The third master
by Aura-ryo-chimera
Summary: Sequal to Third in line, continuation
1. learning the ropes

((A/N: BTW, read first fic. first, .net/s/4042244/1/Third_in_line : Third in line))

---------

Settling in

Kero looked over at Yue. 'How're we gonna get him home like this?' he wondered to himself. Yue was lying very still, trying not to hurt himself worse than he was already. Kero was tempted to bend down and give him a comforting lick, but thought better of it. Yue was real exhausted after the

Final Judgment.

A little too exhausted come to think of it.

"Yue, you're presence… it's real weak," he said, looking over to Yue. Yue nodded. "Without my second form my power is leaking rapidly.

I'm surprised you noticed already though." Yue turned his head a little to look over at Kero. Kero twitched his tail and nodded.

"It's probably because I've spent so much time living in the woods. I tried to pick up your scent so I could remember it for later, and I noticed it's not there. At least it's real faint."

Aura landed on the branch just outside her hollow and peered in. She reached in a paw and rustled around for what she thought she'd need. Star shade leaves for the cut, some hard, sweet smelling bark to use for a splint, and lots of bandages.

"There we go…" she said to herself. She crouched down, and sprang into the air. With a few flaps she was up in the air. She grinned and raised her nose to the air.

Her ears shot up. She sniffed, stored and sorted the scents hurriedly. She could smell a human she had never scented before, as well as a cat, with a similar scent to Kero or Aven, but still unknown. The human scent that almost reminded her of Yue, but not really. Blood, Kero's, Yue's, and her own? But the strongest smell the wind carried was the scent of the cards. She almost forgot to flap as the main scent warped. The scent of the cards started to change, and it gained part of her own scent to it. She blinked and started sniffing in surprise. The scent had vanished?

Kero and Yue looked up as Aura landed. She dropped the supplies down next to Yue and picked up the bark. She put it over the wing where she had broken it, and stared at the wing curiously. Somehow, it didn't look badly broken at all, if at all. She sniffed it and repressed the urge to poke it curiously. Kero leaned over.

"Magic?" he guessed. Aura shrugged and put the bark to the side. She'd put it back later.

She picked up the leaves and began to put them over the worst wounds, wrapping them in bandages. Kero repressed a snicker. Yue looked half mummified, and very ridiculous. Aura grabbed the unused bark in her mouth and walked over to a tree, stuffing it inside a crack in the roots.

"That wing sure heals fast…" she muttered as she looked at the sky. The sun was about to rise soon. Aura smirked slightly and looked back in the direction of the city. "Well, this should help quite a bit." She said. Kero perked his ears and tilted his head. Aura turned to him and explained. "Now that I've been out all night, maybe Ferguson will put me back where I belong." she looked back to the rising sun, noting that ironically it was in the same direction as the orphanage. She smirked and got up, stretching and giving a huge yawn. Kero shook his fur out and also got up.

"Just wondering, what are we gonna do with Yue?" Kero asked, returning to his borrowed form. Yue looked up.

Aura thought and tried to hide a smile. "Hmm… Well, can't leave him here, but I can't see how we could get him inside either. And come to think of it, school's going to open soon. But it's more important nothing else happens to Yue, so I guess I can skip school. If I went, then you Kero would have to come with, in case those punks attacked me, but Yue would be out all alone in the woods. So…"

Kero turned slowly and scowled at her. "Aura, you know I won't allow that. If you miss much more school you could flunk the school year," he said before pausing. "You aren't skipping school, take the cards with you instead." The tone of his voice suggested that that was an order.

Aura's ears sank and she sighed. "Darn, I was hoping you'd forget that option…" she pouted. Kero stared at her, straight in the eyes.

After a few moments, Aura spread her wings. "Fine, I'll get my stuff and head to school…" she moped, flapping into the air.

Aura landed silently in the field near the school and tucked away her wings. She strode into the rest of the school and walked up to the library. With a sigh she thumbed through the books, not finding anything she hadn't read, or would probably read. She glanced at the clock and noted almost an hour before first hour. She peered about and padded over to a secluded spot in the corner of the library, behind the last shelf of the non-fiction area. She curled up with her head on her backpack and closed her eyes, realizing she was tired from all the fighting last night. With a silent yawn, she drifted into a nap.

She ran through the woods, surrounded by wolves she had known. She howled up at the sky, as some of the others joined in. On her side ran a white furred one, tongue lolling. She slowed as wings came out of his back. The wolf collapsed, whining in pain, as the wings flapped, and slashed, cutting through him and pulling out a human shape.

A human…

She growled as it rose out, tall and glaring. The other wolves growled and yelped as cord wrapped around them, dragging them away. A yellow wolf, a blue one, a pink, a purple, a white. Wolves of all colors, her pack were dragged to the human. She lunged at the person in the shadows, but he flew away, and the other wolves howled and screeched as they began to float after him, disappearing. She cried out and yowled, as the nightmare, faded, and another dream took its place.

She flew through the sky and smiled. It was clear and crisp in the sky, the breezes were just right, and the sun warmed her fur. She looked down at the world below, spotting her pack of fifty- five. The cards and guardians all lounging about below. She flew closer and gasped at the sight. Her guardians were bleeding, and the cards were trapped in a fitful slumber, some crying out desperately in their dreams. They cried out, like a pup whining to be fed. She dove, and found herself dizzy and disoriented.

She caught sight of three figures, unfamiliar, as the wind careered her faster down, She howled as she struggled to slow her speed, but the wind slammed her down faster and faster.

She slammed down, and crawled over to her pack, licking Kero's wounds, trying to clean him. She licked her cards, trying to rouse them. Dash staggered over, forcing his eyes open. "Help us…" he pleaded, before falling over asleep. He whined and withered in his sleep the moment he hit the ground.

She opened her eyes in the library and looked up at the clock. It was about five minutes to first hour. She got to her feet, combed her hair back in place over her ears, and adjusted her tail again to look like a belt. Checking over herself, she walked into the main library, setting off to her first class. It was going to be a long day.

Her eyes drooped tiredly as the science teacher droned on and on.

Behind her the class yammered insistently, ignoring the 'be quiets' of the teacher. She struggled to stay awake, silently almost paying attention. She narrowed her eyes, and thought how she would love to be anywhere else. She could smell the frustration building.

"Okay, if you guys won't be quiet. What do I have to do? Look, if you don't want to be here, then you can just leave," the teacher said as he stood by the door he had just opened. Aura's eyebrows shot up in surprise, hesitant, wanting to be sure he was serious.

"Go on, I won't stop anyone. If you don't want to be quiet and stay here, leave," he continued speaking calmly. Aura reached over and stuffed her backpack up with her stuff, and swung it over her shoulder. She strode out the door and walked down the hall to the schools back entrance, weaving through the abandoned halls with a grin.

Reaching the doors, she strode out and bolted for the security the field would offer her in her escape. She ducked behind the currently empty baseball field's wall, and caught her breath. "I hate running on two legs…" she muttered to herself, putting her backpack on her chest and dropping to all fours. "Much better…"

She took off to the woods, not glancing back to the building she had just left behind.

Kero looked up in surprise. "Aura? How can you be back already?

It's only noon!" he asked, getting to his paws. Aura looked to the side, sitting down on a tree root.

"The teacher let us out early." she said calmly.

Kero frowned, giving her a long steady, and very unnerving stare. She fidgeted and looked over. "Okay, he didn't mean for us to take up his offer and make a break for it, but technically he said if we didn't want to be there we could leave," she explained. Kero slapped a paw to his forehead and groaned. "Aura, you can't afford to miss more school, you'll get held back at this rate!" he moaned. Aura just shrugged. "Well I'm not a human. And with a lifespan best counted in centuries, I don't think I have to worry about that yet," she reasoned.

"You chose a master that skips school? On more than one occasion based on what I heard…" Yue whispered at Kero. Kero nodded. "She's not perfect, but who is?" he defended her. She twitched a furry ear at the two.

"I can hear you, ya know!" She chuckled. Kero grinned apologetically.

Aura looked around wearily, making sure no one saw as she crept into the backyard of her new 'home'. Thunder hopped out of a wire, giving the thumbs up, signaling he had taken the security system down for her. She hopped into the house, and opened the window to 'her room' for Yue. He crawled in and looked around the bare space. Aura had moved all the furniture out, leaving only an empty room and a bed.

"Okay, Thunder, keep the cameras here off no matter what. Yue, here's that illusion we used during the fight. If any one comes in, crouch down and they shouldn't be able to see you. I'm going to look for Silent."

With Kero perched on her shoulder, Aura took off into the sky, heading to the old building where Silent stayed.


	2. The first battle

The first battle

Aura and Kero landed outside the window of the cabin Silent was in. The card was waiting in the same room, just as Aura had left her. Without a sound they entered. Aura took out her staff and looked up at Silent. The card gave a sigh without sound, as Aura mouthed the sealing spell. She perked her ears as she heard Silent say "Thanks for saving me for last, I would also like to be the last changed."

Silent vanished in a swirl of magic, and Aura whipped out her pen, still wondering about what Silent meant by that. She signed the last card and picked up her staff. Her fur began to tingle the moment it touched her paw. She blinked as it glowed softly, and returned to the ball of light it had been when she first received it.

Whipping around she saw Kero looking just as confused behind her. Before Aura could even ask what was happening, he shrugged and turned his attention to the staff.

They watched as the key reemerged, the crescent moon that the handle had was now replaced but a more claw, or scythe-like tip. Aura reached out a paw to grab it, and the moment her paw touched the handle it changed into a new staff.

It had a blue rod, just under a foot long with indents near each end. On the each tip was a white sphere, and continuing on from both spheres, they melted into long curved blades. The blades were in the shape of the pale yellow crescent moon that was once on the tip, as they curved back into sharp tips, the outside of the crescents as sharp as knives

Aura bent down and sniffed it when it fell to the ground. As if by instinct she pushed her nose to the ground and bit the rod. Her teeth worked for a moment, and the new staff slid to the back of her mouth, halfway into her gums and half fitting perfectly into her back teeth so she could grip the staff but still work her mouth without much interference to her jaws. She peered to the sides of her mouth where the points were pointing behind her with the tips facing out like whiskers. She shook her head back and forth, occasionally slicing the air in front of her with the blades as she tried out the new staff.

Satisfied with her new weapon, she turned to Kero. "This is much easier to carry." She smiled and looked out the window, spreading her wings and flying out.

"What just happened?" Kero wondered.

Aura and Kero neared the city edges, Aura still flying with her new tusk- blade- staff. She sniffed the air and began to peer around. The wind had turned against her and was blowing erratically for a moment, before steadying out into her face. She tilted her wings, falling back into the trees to avoid it. Kero followed. She tried to steer out of the breeze, but it changed and began to blow her back yet again. She growled and let out a small burst of fire in the air. It did no good though, of course. She snarled and dove down to the ground and raced forward on foot. She yelped as the ground began to shake, throwing her off balance. Her tail swished and she hopped back into the air, immediately being pulled back by the wind. She twisted and wormed and writhed, trying to escape the wind as it pushed her farter and farther and farther away.

She began to panic, and howled, thrashing in the sky as Kero twisted about in the growing wind too. He let loose a burst of flame into the sky, lighting up a clouding sky. He snarled, trying to fly over to Aura despite the wind pushing between them. His growls were drowned away in the growing tornado.

Yue looked at the sky as he flew. He could feel Kero starting to panic somewhere, and if there were trouble for him, then his master would probably be in trouble too. And whether he liked it or not, he was bound by his magic to keep her out of danger. He approached the area where thick knots of clouds were swelling. He felt a strong wind begin to push him from behind, sending him speeding over to the scene. He braked with his wings, attempting to slow down before he over shot. He was startled just how strong the winds were when he tried to hover, and found he couldn't. He surged forward, flapping with all his might, but the best he could manage was to stay in place. He began sliding backwards as the winds grew stronger.

Aura snarled and whirled in the air, trying to land. She couldn't waste the energy flying in the wintertime, when food was scarce and the cold bit through even the thickest fur. She had to risk the ground. She landed and gripped the earth with her claws. It trembled a while, and Kero also landed. To Aura's surprise, Yue was thrown down to the ground too. She lashed her tail as the ground stopped shaking. She sniffed the air cautiously, her spine fur bristling, as she smelled a concentrated storm heading straight for them. She peered around and saw the rain begin to fall, and some lighting flashing in the sky. With a growl she noticed a swirl of clouds converging into a long snake of water.

She growled as it turned at the group. Her tail lashed and she snarled and backed over to Kero.

"I feel something funny coming from that cloud…" She hissed.

Kero nodded, also looking troubled. He turned to Yue who had stood up, and he too was staring at the water, looking troubled. She brushed that note aside for later and turned back to her opponent.

The water charged down at them, with a hiss as the three sprang, ran, and scrambled out of the way. Yue flapped into the air, Aura clinging to his foot with her own tired wings drooping behind her limply. The wind died down a moment, and then sprang up again. The two tumbled right back to the ground, and scrambled away from the water as it darted at them again. Aura raced to a tree, claws ready to climb out of the way.

She yelped and changed direction as the water began to target her, sending out jets and streams at her as she fled. She wove around trees and rocks, trying to escape. The rain was falling heavily now, making it harder for her to run, and harder to see, to hear, or smell. If it hadn't been soaked, her tail would be bristling. She tried to take off again, and again the wind kicked up, sending her right back to the ground.

She squealed and scrambled away from the torrents of water. A piece of an old abandoned leash, or string caught her foot, tugging it back as she tried to run. Se looked up at the stream rushing for her. She roared defiantly.

Kero jumped in front of her, blocking the water. He grunted as the force of the water sent him flat to the ground beside her. Aura tugged her paw free, before turning back to the water as it twisted around to re-aim

"Aura, scram. Get away, me and Yue'll get away later." He said. Aura looked down at him and then up at the water again. It screeched and dove again. She hesitated a moment longer, before turning and bolting to the woods. She looked back and glimpsed Kero diving at the water snake, and Yue hurling ice, trying to keeps its attention from her. She turned back to the path, circling around the area to find the right path home. She darted on the path home, running as fast as she could o the slick ground.

Kero turned a moment; glad to see Aura had listened to him and fled. He snarled and darted in one last time before flapping over to his brother.

"Yue, let's get out of here!" He shouted over the wind and rain, which threatened to pluck them from the sky.

They flew on through the sky, searching the ground for Aura, trying to out fly the rain.

Aura dashed down a dirt path, lined with wooden fences and wide grassy overgrown fields on the edges. She was glad to feel her paws back on somewhat dry ground again. She felt Kero and Yue fly lower, flanking her and watching behind at the pursuing clouds.

Aura looked back too. She picked up the pace as the clouds overtook her again, sending more of the water all around her, trapping her. She ducked and dodged into an overgrown ditch as a head of water leapt down, scooping up Kero in it's depths before racing back into the sky. She whined and tried to yelp a warning to Yue, but a second head dove down, scooping up the shocked guardian. She pressed herself into the thick weeds as a third head turned to search for her.

Aura nosed her new staff, gripping the sturdy weapon in her jaws as she pulled out a card. The pink face of Water stared up at her. She looked down cross-eyed at her new staff. 'How the heck do I unseal a card with this?' she wondered briefly to herself. She closed her eyes, grappling for an instinct. With a claming feeling she rested on one, feeling it inside her, though she didn't know what it could do. She touched her nose to the card muttering,

" Card of stars, abandon the form you've held and reform anew. I, Aura your master, order you to reform to a new base. Aura cards." She growled.

Water rose into the air, glowing as Aura touched her nose to the cards name. In a flash of light, the pink base of the card was gone, replaced with new colors. A slate gray back, and edges tipped with a golden yellow. The base of the cards and the name were shades of blue. The back was the same gray backing, with golden edges, spiking and curling around blue pillars that seemed to support another yellow edge. Blue runes glittered in the rim, and two blue circles sat on the edges of the gray center. A crescent moon, tilted up, sat on the right of the top circle. The card began to hum as the magic seeped through the staff.

Aura blinked and began to black out. She could feel wisps of Water's magic circling around her, seeping into her fur. She went limp in the cards grip, feeling oddly warm and content. Then, her body began to move on its own.

Water lifted her paw. The mud covered it, except for the clear white claws of her master. The card clenched her teeth around the staff, raising her head to the torrents of water in the sky. She felt a nudge from Aura in the corner of her mind. With a leap into the sky, she bounded at the spiraling water where her guardians were being held in the choking magic torrents.

The blades on the staff began to glow, Waters magic pulsing through them. Water leapt at the water, diving through the currents without resistance, hopping around the rain in the cloud and banishing it. The waters in the cloud, and those around the guardians, scattered into mist, letting the late afternoon sun onto the field. Satisfied her job had been completed; Water curled all her magic into the blades, and then seeped back into her card.

Aura blinked, and almost whimpered at her headache she felt as she regained control. She felt her legs buckle and she fell over, expecting to fall onto the warm wet grass. She fell onto a furry yellow lump. Kero propped her back on her feet, nudging her worriedly. "Are you okay? What happened?" He asked as she clambered onto his back.

Aura whimpered and closed her eyes, giving a weak twitch of her tail to the ditch area, and another to the staff. Kero picked up the new staff, and plodded over to the ditch, peering around the overgrowth for anything unusual. He tensed, and picked up Water in his jaws. Kero looked over his shoulder, sliding the new card under a limp heavy paw. Aura cracked and eye open and wagged her tail weakly, then closed her eyes and drifted asleep.

I guess we'll have to wait for what happened. Yue, are you okay too?" He asked.

Yue gave a curt nod, and took off for Mrs. Ferguson's house. Kero stretched his wings and followed, glancing at Aura occasionally as they flew home.

'What was that; I feel like… like I should have known this was coming. I wonder why.' Kero wondered as he slipped in through the window and slid Aura onto the floor.


	3. A problem arises

2- Another problem arises

Aura awoke on the floor of her 'room'. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, seeing Kero gazing distractedly out the window, and Yue sitting in the corner; apparently he was sleeping. She sat up and rubbed her head, noting that her headache, though lessened, was still lingering.

She rolled to her feet and walked over to the window. Kero still stared out distractedly; he didn't notice her. She sat next to him. "What'cha thinking about?" She asked him.

"What? Oh, nothing." He said smiling. "You feeling better? What happened?" He asked.

"I'm not really sure. I was trying to figure out how to use the staff, since it stuck out on the sides, and I looked for an instinct like I had for the first staff. I touched my nose to the water card, it changed colors and then I felt light headed and tingly. I just sort of wanted to get you guys out; when I came too I was exhausted, but you were free." She explained.

Kero stared out the window again and thought. The sun was setting behind the mountains, and Aura stared out at it.

The last rays broke through the window, and as the sun slipped past the peaks, Kero perked his ears. Moments later, Aura also looked around the room to the Star book, which lay resting under the bed. It was glowing, and Aura thought she could hear a faint hum coming from it too.

Kero and Aura stared at the book as it glowed. Aura tilted her head and poked it cautiously with a paw. It floated over to her and she sniffed it, then picked it up and stared. She sprang back as the room vanished, and she glimpsed a starry landscape. Two scents were carried on the breeze, both human, but both familiar. She could sense a powerful mischief in the air, but also a separate anxiety. She filed the scents away and blinked as the room returned. Kero looked unfazed, so she dismissed it as either unimportant, something for her alone, or her imagination.

More concerning was the book. Gone was the pink on pink colors; they had been replaced with a slate gray base, golden on the edges. Also, the big bright pink 'Sakura' name on the front was now an icy blue 'Aura'. There was also a blue moon where the star had been on the cover, and turning it over she saw the symbol on the back of the Water card, was also on the back of the book.

"Whoa, cool." She muttered as she examined the new book.

Aura walked back into the room smiling. Kero and Yue both snoozed; Yue in a corner and Kero on her bed. She plopped down in the small patch of bed Kero didn't occupy. The shifting mattress woke him and he blinked up at Aura. "Why're you so happy all the sudden?" He asked groggily.

Aura's tail wagged s she told him the news. " I was gone from school half the day, and from here for two. She's pretty mad. I think we're going home soon!" She yipped excitedly. Kero knew 'she' would be Mrs. Ferguson. His tail wagged excitedly.

Aura trotted over to the book and nosed through the card, chattering the good news to them in card. Yue raised an eyebrow and leaned over to Kero.

" Why is she squeaking? She is mad, isn't she?" He asked. Kero's eyes clouded over sadly.

" I thought so," He said to himself. Aura turned to listen, looking worried about something else too. "You can't hear what they're saying then? The cards?" Kero continued. Yue stared at Kero.

"That's because the cards, aside from Mirror, are incapable of speech." Yue replied; only Kero could pick out the sliver of doubt on his face. Aura perked her ears and looked over at her yellow guardian sadly.

Kero shook his head from side to side, and explained, "No, they have a different language. I thought I was the only one who knew what they said besides them, and Aura now. I guess I was right then." Yue looked a bit surprised.

Aura looked over at Kero, still troubled. "Kero," She reached a paw into the book and pulled out a pink card. "They're all in here. And they aren't talking to me. It's like they're hibernating or something; do you know what's wrong with them?" She asked.

Kero perked his ears and peered over into the book. She was right. Dash, Fight, Power, and even Jump were in their pink frames, and they felt deep in sleep, like Aura said. He felt weak magic lingering, and glanced quickly at Yue. Aura looked up at the two.

"Kero, what was that?" She asked, catching the worried glance. Kero jumped and looked over at Aura.

"What was what?" He asked, deciding to play dumb.

"That worried glance at Yue."

"What worried glance?"

"Don't play dumb; you're hiding something aren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Kero said, scowling at her. Aura didn't reply, but sat down on the floor and stared Kero in the eye.

He met her gaze bravely at first, but began to feel unnerved as she kept staring straight at him; something she never did, because among wolves it was taken as a challenge.

Kero fidgeted, looking around the room, trying to avoid her strange, eerie gaze. She sat very still, waiting. Kero glanced over once more and shivered.

"All right, all right! Yue's got hardly any magic; like the cards right now! You don't have enough to go around, and he can't hibernate to conserve what he has! Stop staring at me!" the lion whined.

Aura blinked and looked over at Yue. "Why didn't you guys tell me? There's got to be some way to supplement the energy right? Like how you're always eating, Kero." She said, turning back to the yellow furball.

Kero shook his head. "Yue's not like me. My element's the sun, it shines on it's own. But the moon needs magic from someone else. And also, he can't eat." He said. Aura perked her ears curiously and leaned over to Yue.

"He can't eat? Then where does this go?" She wondered, pulling his mouth open and poking her finger into his mouth curiously. Yue squirmed away and glared at his master, who was staring at him curiously, before remembering the topic.

"Wait, you said _someone's_ magic. Does that-"

There was a scuffling at the door, like someone running away. Aura perked her ears, reverting from her tiger to human while she reached for the door. The hallway outside was empty, but she smelled Ralph had been eavesdropping outside her door. She scolded herself mentally for letting her guard slip with danger so close to her own den. She whipped around to face Kero. "Kero, false form." She ordered.

She heard footsteps stomping up the stairs. She closed the door and opened the window. "Yue, hide!" She hissed. He flapped out the window, landing on the roof, luckily shielded from the neighbors view by the roof design. He grimaced at the dirt and grime getting all over him.

Aura plopped Kero onto her bed as the door opened. Ralph stood beside Mrs. Ferguson, looking around angrily. Aura glared over at the two.

"What?" She growled.

"Ralph says he heard voices in here. Why?" The suck up lady asked. Aura crinkled her nose disdainfully.

"Why are you askin' me? I'm not a psychiatrist. _I_ don't know why he's hearing voices. Take it to a doctor." She growled. Mrs. Ferguson glared at Aura with ever increasing disgust; then she stormed out of the room. Aura glared at Ralph as her left, until she got up and closed the door.

"That was too close. I gotta end this soon." She growled to Kero as she walked to the window to let her other guardian in. She shivered at the cold breeze that blew in. 'Yeah, I need to get home soon.'

"Well, I never expected she would figure this out right off the bat like this." Eriol muttered to Spinnel and Ruby. He watched from his magic circle as the chimera circled for a moment, before settling down on the floor for a nap next to Keroberos. Yue still napped in the corner, casting a look at his master before going to sleep again.

'I wonder if she'll be able to figure out what to do on her own?' He wondered to himself.

_-----------------

((A/N: Because anyone who's seen the whole series can probably, or has figured out Eriols there by now. I can't stand when someone tries to keep the readers in suspense over something obvious like that.))


	4. So a scheme is planned

3- And a scheme is planned

Aura lay awake in her room. She twitched her tail in the dark room, casting glances up at Yue. He snoozed in the same corner as he had slept in most of the day. Kero was sprawled out on the carpet. She shifted on the bed and turned to the window. The near-full moon and the stars twinkled in the night. The wind blew around the house, stirring the longing for flight inside her.

She sighed, looking over at Yue. 'There he goes again.' She thought sadly. His shoulder grew transparent; he was already starting to fade without enough magic to support his existence. Her tail twitched guiltily. 'I should have learned the magic arts too. I learned everything else for an extra trick up my sleeve. Why'd I ignore this then?' she thought to herself. She sighed and got up, pacing over to the window. 'Because I never thought it was really real. That's why. I can start fixing that now though. I can learn how to use it and have another technique for another time then.

'But is there another way to get enough magic for him now? If he gets magic from me, maybe he could get it from someone else too? But would that work? Dang it, I wish I knew more. Maybe I could train myself and my magic would grow? No, not nearly enough time. Not only that, this sort of thing's rarely increasable, only more focused to appear stronger. Can't raise a max stat.'

She looked across the sky as Harriss drifted over. Aura looked over flatly to her, and asked,

"I don't suppose you've got any ideas?" She asked. Harriss looked over at the star cards. "Sorry," Harriss replied. "I don't know anything here, but Loop might. After all, during the capture of Nothing, that… incident, he ripped off some of Kero's magic. Yeah, Loop may know more." She said. Aura perked her ears in surprise.

"I can't believe it, a potentially useful answer. Wow!" She joked. Harriss grinned, fading away again.

Aura walked through the woods with Loop's card in her teeth. Her paws took her to a clearer area of trees deep enough into the woods, a spot she's often come with her pack to teach pups to howl. She summoned her staff blade and tossed Loop into the air.

" Card of stars, abandon the form you've held and reform anew. I, Aura your master, order you to reform to a new base. Aura cards." She growled.

Loop glowed pink one last moment, and then in a flash changed to the Aura card base. She felt the card stir awake and slide out into the open woods. Aura sat down as Loop floated over.

"What is it?" Loop asked groggily. It raised part of its loop to rub its 'eyes' sleepily with a 'yawn'.

"What do you know about transferring magic from person to person?" She asked. Loop brightened immediately.

"Everything. I'm quite the expert about that myself! What do you need to know? Go ahead, ask away!" The card bragged. Aura raised her ears hopefully.

"Well, Yue's needing supplemental magic, and Kero said he needs _somebody's_ magic. That somebody, does it have to be mine, his masters? Or is there a way to get it from elsewhere?" She asked.

Loop waved his 'hand' back and forth as he answered, "Oh, of course that would work. It's a simple matter to transfer magic. After all, magic's just another form of energy, like electricity or something. If the person just follows the right steps, its very easy, instinct even." He answered.

Aura thought a moment about that. "What if the person doesn't follow the 'right steps'? Like if it wasn't their idea to transfer?" She muttered.

"Well, they have to be willing to transfer, otherwise it's impossible."

"Define willing."

"Why? How is it confusing?"

Aura sighed. "Well, what if they didn't like it, didn't want to, but would?" She asked.

"That makes no sense." Loop said, 'scratching' his 'head'.

"Okay. I'm thinking of maybe scaring someone into it." She admitted.

"Well, as long as they agree, no matter the reason why, it should work. Just, no mind control or anything, ya' know?"

Aura sighed. "Okay. I think it will work then. Thanks." She said, turning to go home before sunrise. Loop fluttered back to his card, curling up in it.

Aura stretched in the late sunlight. School was out now, and it was time to get to work. She had a card in her pocket, and was on her way to the woods to talk over her plan with it. For a moment, she had a flicker of doubt.

'Kero won't like this. Maybe Yue'll be mad too. Maybe I should… No! I put my pack first and foremost, I don't have time to think of another plan now, Yue might not even last the night otherwise!' She thought determinedly, shaking her head.

'Besides, it'll take out two birds with one stone; it's the best option either way. For everyone.'


	5. Dangerous determination

4- A dangerous determination- The price of protecting a pack

Aura crouched in one of the trees overshadowing the sidewalks below. Her fingers dug into the wood as she waited on the walk to home. She held her ears down, not wanting to be spotted this close to human homes with cat showing in plain sight. She tensed as her target walked along the path, chattering with some of his friends from school. He looked uneasy as one of them said something undistinguishable- to her human ears. She kneaded the branch nervously as they approached, all unaware of the girl watching them from above. Ralph fell behind the rest of the group, casting anxious glances around him, as if he could tell something was watching him, waiting to strike. He gulped and looked over at his friends, readying himself to run back to the safety of his herd.

Aura fell from her branch, landing in front of him in a crouch. He opened his mouth, but before he could give a single shocked squeak, Aura had a strong hand over his mouth and had dragged him into the cover of deeper woods.

The sounds of chatter faded, to be replaced by the rustle of undergrowth as she dragged Ralph through the forest. Once the scents of the city had been buried by those of the woods, she began to drag him by his shirt collar until she reached a clearing in the woods, surrounded by thick trees and rocks. No more leaves crunched under foot, and she released her captive.

She bounced onto a boulder so she was squatting about eye level with him. Her lips drew back in a fierce snarl,

"You. You were the guy who broke the lock in my room back at the orphanage to let those creeps in to my room, aren't you?"

Ralph nodded nervously, inching away the way he had come. He stared wide-eyed and fearful as Aura started to grow out her fangs, seemingly too big for her mouth, and uncurl her tail, long and powerful. Her ears perked forward aggressively and she lashed her tail.

"I wouldn't try and run if I were you, human. Look behind you; you aren't goin' anywhere."

Ralph whirled to see something that could have come from he darkest nightmares. A huge beast, growling and snapping and snarling behind him, it's body bathed in the glow of lightning rippling over his dog like form. Thunder growled, deep and low as it's name, baring his teeth and lowering his head angrily. Ralph whimpered and shivered, falling over on his rear and turning back to Aura.

"Look, you let those murderous creeps into my room, you got past the lock and are a coward who would do it again if you were threatened, therefore a threat to me. The way I deal with a threat normally is to kill it." She started.

Ralph whimpered again and stuttered, "Bu-But you can't kill me. That's- You can't right? Don't hurt me, I won't do it again! I promise!"

Aura lashed her tail and hissed, "Did I SAY I was going to kill you? No! I said NORMALLY I would kill you. So quit blubbering. Cowards like you do anything, promise or not, when you're threatened. Your promise means absolutely nothing.

"The thing is, you got lucky." She continued. "You have magic that a friend of mine needs to survive. That magic is how you got past my lock, to let those would be murderers into my room. I could get rid of the threat by getting rid of your magic- giving it to my friend. Or… I could get rid of you."

Ralph looked back nervously at Thunder and back to Aura. "Well, if I have that much magic, I can just blast you away, right?" He challenged.

Aura laughed. "Just knowing about it doesn't mean it does you any good. It did let you pick my lock, because that's something you could do on you own. Ignorant magic, if it's strong enough, cancels out other, weaker magic, like a personal shield. But it won't let you 'blast me away' just by knowing about it. And yes, I speak from experience here.

"You have two choices: give up the magic that is threatening me, and give to my friend, or I'll get rid of it by killing you."

She flexed her claws, dropping into her full tiger form at last. The sun was setting, silhouetting her form as she crouched. Her spine fur was bushing up, all the way to the tip of her tail, curling around her paws. Her claws scraped the rock and her long teeth gleamed to match her glowing red eyes, stripped with veins of white at the edges.

It was no choice, Ralph shrieked at this. Then, curling into a ball, squealed, "Okay, Okay! I'll do it! I'll give my magic to your friend! Don't kill me! Don't kill m-me," He sobbed.

Kero paced the room in his true form, glancing at the door. He paced back to the far side of the room as his eyes darted to the window. He paced back to the door and sniffed at it anxiously.

"Keroberos, stop pacing, it does nothing." Yue said tiredly.

Kero sat down and stared at the door whining, "Where is she? She should have been home an hour ago! And that brat that lives her too, he's not back yet either! What if those punks attacked her! What if she's stuck in the woods trying to outrun them?"

"Keroberos, stop worrying. It's getting very annoying." Yue growled, folding his arms as he lowered his head again and closed his eyes.

Kero glanced over at his brother, and stuck his tongue out at Yue childishly. He heard the doorknob turn, and perked his ears excitedly as Aura peered in.

He lowered it in confusion. Why was she acting suspicious? She smelled like that Ralph brat too for some reason. She walked in and Kero gaped in surprise as Ralph followed behind her fearfully.

Ralph looked around and cowered when he saw Kero, his mouth open, unintentionally showing his sharp cat teeth.

"Yue," Aura called. "I found someone who'll give you the magic you need."

Yue looked up, staring disbelievingly at the cowering human next to his master. Ralph squeaked and trembled, edging back to the door. Aura whipped over and snorted at him. He stopped and inched back to the center of the room. Kero squinted suspiciously at Ralph, then looked up curiously at Aura.

"Okay, how do you transfer the magic?" She asked the pale guardian. Yue stood and walked over to Ralph, towering over the whimpering teen. Aura glared at Ralph again, baring her teeth. He shut up, trembling.

Kero narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Aura. 'What the heck did she do to get the brat this scared?' he wondered.

Yue began to explain the magic transfer process to Ralph, who nodded dumbly. Aura walked over, and slammed the door closed with her foot.

"Continue," She said as Yue stopped to watch her rummaging through the Aura book. "Go on, I'll be right back, just gotta take care of one last thing here." She muttered, hopping out the window and climbing to the roof.

"Card of stars, abandon the form you've held and reform anew. I, Aura your master, order you to reform to a new base. Aura cards." She growled, touching her nose lightly onto Erase.

The card changed and Erase emerged. Aura perked her ears back to the part of the roof her room would be under.

"I need you to wipe that Ralph kids memory of the magic transfer once he loses his magic." She stated, twitching the tip of her tail anxiously. "Oh, one more thing…" Erase nodded and returned to a mist settling around the window.

Aura stood in the room, as Ralph gave up his magic to Yue. She squinted at the light from the transfer. And in an instant it was done.

Ralph collapsed onto the floor gasping at the loss of energy that came with the transferee. Aura looked down at him a moment, and raised a paw to Erase. The card swirled in, wiping the boys memory of the incident. Then with a grunt, she shoved him into the hallway by the door of his room.

"Miss Chimera!" Ferguson screeched.

Aura perked her ears and put the book she was reading down, smiling. It seemed everything was going as planned for once.

"Yeeeeees?" She said, slinking out into the main room. Mrs. Ferguson crossed her arms, glaring at the chimera. Aura tried to only look mildly pleased with herself as Mrs. Ferguson started talking.

"Aura, Ralph says you threatened him. I can tell he's scared, I want to know if this is true!" She said.

Aura shrugged. "Yeah, I needed something of his for a friend, so what? He's too much of a coward to even say no.," she said nonchalantly.

Mrs. Ferguson almost shrieked. She grabbed Aura by the arm. " That is it! I've had it with you! If you'd rather live in that run down old shack of an orphanage than here, fine! Pack, you're going back tomorrow!" Mrs. Ferguson screeched.

Aura turned and walked away smiling. Her ears were ringing, but soon she'd be back home. It was worth it.

As she walked in, she glanced over at the guardians. Yue was staring neutrally, but Kero looked ecstatic, and she guessed he had already heard.

She starched, laying down on her bed and drifting off to sleep.


	6. Unrest

5- Unrest

Aura flopped onto her bed and sighed happily, dropping her bag onto the floor. Kero and Yue walked in through the door; thankful the hallway was deserted right now so the two could walk about unnoticed.

"It's good to be home!" The chimera sighed, and her yellow guardian nodded silently in agreement.

Yue strode in and looked around at the small, sparsely furnished room. Then, selecting the left nearby corner, he sat down, pushing aside some toys.

"Hey!" Kero whined. "That's my bed! That's my spot!" As Yue tossed a red fox aside. Yue looked up and over at Aura. She lay on her back, and raised her hand. She waved it in a 'you two sort it out' gesture and stretched out on the blankets.

"I was there first, I have more right to that spot. It even has my scent all over it!" Kero complained. Yue raised and eyebrow.

"I couldn't tell. Find a different spot." He said aloofly, not even looking up at his brother.

Kero scowled and jumped onto his brother, grabbing Yue's cloths in his teeth and dragging his older brother into the center of the room, then bolting for his corner before Yue regained his balance.

Yue glared, and grabbed Kero's scruff, trying to wrestle the heavy lump of fur to a different corner. Kero responded by growling and sinking his claws into the carpet.

"My spot!" Kero growled. Yue grunted and tugged harder.

Aura looked up and narrowed her eyes. Then, she gave a bark to get their attention.

"Hey, what the heck are your problems? Keep quiet, will ya'?" She whined, turning on her I pod.

"You heard her, let go and find your own corner!" Kero growled.

"That is not what she said. You should find a different spot!" Yue said, pulling even harder on his brother's scruff.

"Hey, you two, I got a solution!" Aura said perkily, clapping her hands together. "How about this? Yue, you get the tree outside the window, and Kero, you can have the roof! Or you could just sort this out without waking up the whole building!" She chirped cheerily.

"Fine, you can have that corner." Yue said icily, settling himself next to the desk and bookshelf.

Kero grinned triumphantly, rearranging the toys back to the position that they had been in.

Aura yawned and got up, looking around her room sleepily, guessing she had dozed off. She wasn't alone either; Kero was also asleep, as was Yue.

"Guess I'll go hang out with the rest of the pack then." She muttered, sliding out the window into the cold air.

"Hey!" Aura yipped. She strode happily into the cave, wagging her tail at her pack mates. They got up, greeting her with the usual muzzle licking and submission gestures, and she did the same as she greeted the wolves higher in the pack than she was.

"Where's Relth-dis?" She asked, looking about for the black pup. The wolves gazed around sadly.

" Winter was too hard, she died when she got separated in the cold." Mi'jum said sadly.

"Oh… that means…" She trailed off in her thoughts, looking at the last four wolves in her dwindling pack. 'That means,' she thought sadly, 'that our packs down to Me, Mi'jum, Do'vup, Lahjach and To'bus. If spring, and plentiful food, weren't on the way she would doubt the packs ability to survive through the winter. But the snow was thawing already, and the pack was putting weight on again. They already looked sleeker.'

But she said, "Well, spring came. We'll have food running plentifully again in a few days." And with that the pack got up, and left to hunt.

"I'm home. I went and dug up our stuff." Aura said cheerily as she slid in through the window with a load of stuff from the cave.

"Why didn't you tell us you were going out? After you scared that Ralph kid that bad, what if he had gone for help and those thugs had gone after you?" Kero whined, jumping over to the window.

"Oh, relax, you bid ol' furball. I was with the wolves, getting our stuff." She said, slipping the load of furnishings and knick-knacks onto the floor. "And besides, it's not like they could catch me when I'm in the woods. I still remember how to take care of myself when I need to."

"But still," Kero whined. Aura smirked over at him and began to refurnish the tiny room with socks, screws, a TV, a broken cabinet door, and some books.

"Our master, why does she hang all of that junk on the walls?" Yue asked Kero quietly.

Kero shrugged. "That's just how she is, she has a bunch of weird quirks. That's all." He looked over at the TV cords, all tangled and multi colored. Then he decided to nap instead, as Aura began to put a little beanbag on her desk and a tiny blanket with it. The makings for Change's bed later.

'I don't get it. I can't see why Keroberos chose her as our master. She's crazy. Is there a way to… No… It's too late to change my decision now. I'm bound to her...' Yue thought to himself, watching the chimera arrange the cabinet door so it hung on the wall like a door.


	7. sneaking

6- sneaking

"Then, the only way to keep the cars going is to turn them into Aura cards?" Aura asked. Harriss nodded.

"That's right, your magic will even itself out when all the cards are turned to Aura cards. Until then, if they run out of magic, hibernating or not, they're just pieces of paper. But if you go around changing them with no reason and run out of magic mid way, they could go berserk. Just make sure you've got the energy though. I can't see why there would be a problem then. But…" Harriss looked out the window at the full moon outside. "But, make sure Kero doesn't know. He could get mad if you started changing them for no reason cause' it's dangerous for you if it goes wrong. But I think you need to and you can. It's for your pack of 53 after all, that should be reason enough with you. But you could be in deep- a bad spot if you do more than one or two a day, that's what's so dangerous about it."

Aura grabbed her staff in her teeth and tossed Freeze into the air, reciting the changing spell.

"Card of stars, abandon the form you've held and reform anew. I, Aura your master, order you to reform to a new base. Aura cards." She growled.

Freeze whistled and flopped onto the leaves, then wriggled into the sand and slipped into the lake again. Aura bent down and scraped the back of her claws over the smooth icy surface.

"Don't tell Kero." She whispered, turning to fly back home before the sun rose.

Aura fluttered into the room and hopped into bed, curling up and pulling up the covers. The clock read 6:35. She closed her eyes, drifting into a catnap. She would have to get up for school in only half an hour.

"D'arvit" she muttered as she curled up.

"Wake up, you have school to day." Kero said, prodding the napping mass of covers and fur. Aura groaned and rolled over, digging her claws into the sheets as the yellow lump tried to drag them off the bed.

"Just once, once, could you get up without putting me through this morning routine?" He whined, dragging both blankets and his master onto the floor.

Aura growled tiredly and spluttered into an annoyed hiss before rolling onto her paws and shaking herself. She gave a huge yawn, and then plodded over to the pile of cloths under her desk, rummaging around for something somewhat clean and putting it on.

"I hate school." She muttered as she brushed out her human hair and tucked her ears under it. Her tail curled around her waist and Kero landed curled up over her shoulders.

Aura rubbed her eyes and tried to focus on the teacher as he droned on about atoms of particles or whatever it was they were supposed to be learning. She laid her head on the desk and crossed her arms over her eyes, trying not to fall asleep and slip into her hybrid form. 'Dang it I'm tired. What the heck is wrong?' She wondered to herself as she felt Kero tapping her back to full consciousness with his tail tip.

As the bell rang Aura bolted to the empty bathroom. She pulled out her key tiredly and flipped through the card book, selecting Mirror.

"Hey, Aura, what do you think you're doing?" Kero asked as she tossed Mirror up.

"I'm tired, I'm sending in a substitute student. Besides, it's a substitute teacher for sixth hour anyway. I'm gonna go find a tree and sleep in it for a few hours." She growled, tapping her nose to Mirror. Mirror touched down onto the floor in Aura's form.

"Aura, wait, wait! No! If you send in a substitute student you won't be learning! No, Sorry Mirror. Hey, Aura are you listening! No, you're not leaving school. You're not listening!" Kero hissed as she closed the door and snuck out the entrance of the school as Mirror went to her next hour.

----------

Aura, I can't believe you ditched when I was telling you not to! Wait, no I can believe it. Aura, You can't skip school anytime you feel like it. Are you listening?" Kero badgered as Aura walked sleepily into the woods.

"Kero, give it a rest. I'm tired and Mirror likes school. I learned all this years ago, I've been through most of high school a whole bunch of times in my life by now. I know all this. Enough of it anyway." She yawned; as she began to scale the tall tree she often played her flute in.

Kero floated off her shoulder and glared at her as she curled up in the hollow and fell asleep.

-----

Aura stood on a sloped rock overlooking a woodland that stretched pas the horizon. The pined waved in a breeze. Aura raised her nose into the air and sniffed at the scents.

There were trees, her pack and human. She smelled blood on the wind too. She could smell metal and she could hear vague cries of pain.

"What? What…" She trailed off, unable to form even a full thought in this strange wood. She saw the sun moving through the sky overhead, and the smell of blood mingled with the sound of tears. It all felt a little familiar, but very vague.

"Where… when…" She tried to focus, but thoughts seemed to slip past as only distant feelings. There were screams and yowls and screeches and howls and a cry of rage and pain she couldn't identify even though it sounded familiar.

--------

Aura opened her eyes in the fading sunlight. She uncurled and slid out onto a branch, shaking off a distant feeling she couldn't think of.

--------

Aura slid into the room and wagged her tail at Mirror in greeting before crawling into her bed to catch a few more hours of sleep.


	8. Caught

7- Caught

Aura flew through the cold night sky. A half moon hung in the sky overhead, glowing onto the chimera below. Aura flew aimlessly around, trying to tire herself out.

Fly soared next to her, happy to have been released that night. Aura sighed and flew higher. Tired and sleepy, but unable to sleep in the upcoming spring, she let out a long howl as she soared in the sky. She smiled at the feeling of the wind in her fur and the sight of the clear starry sky.

Aura flapped higher and higher, gazing at the stars overhead. It had been just a little over a week since she started changing the cards at night. By now she had changed Jump, Dash, Change, Little, Twin, Wave, Libra and Shadow. And then tonight she had changed Fly.

She yawned and angled her wings, circling back to her home. Kero would be up soon even though it was a weekend. Luckily.

She glided down to the window frame and slipped in. Then she realized something, and pulled out Lock.

"Sorry I forgot to put you back up earlier." She muttered as she grabbed her staff and tapped her nose to the card, reciting the spell in her head. She felt a surge of power go thought her, and then Lock drifted onto the window, seeping in and resuming his guard around her room.

"Thanks." She said, sliding in the window.

--------

Kero poked Aura in the side. The sleepy chimera chirped and cracked an eye open in the early morning light.

"Aura, Lock won't let me out." Kero whined. Aura groaned and rolled over, putting a floppy paw on the wall. "Lock," She groaned, "It's too early for this, just let him out."

"Fine, fine." Lock complained, grudgingly opening the window for the guardian. Kero fluttered out and took off over the forest for breakfast.

Aura pulled her paw back under the covers and curled up, closing her eyes and shivering 'Aw crud, I forgot the cards'll be running around right now. D'arvit!' She thought.

Yue looked up at her from his corner. "Are you feeling okay?" He asked.

Aura rolled over and grabbed the pillow. "Yeah, 'm just tired." She slurred, dropping back to sleep.

Yue narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but shook his head and stared out in to space.

--------

Kero scratched on the window about half an hour later.

"Aura! Aura, can you hear me? Lock locked me out! Let me in! Aura?" He whined. There was only silence.

"Yue, can you let me in? Yue?" He whined. Yue looked up at Kero and got up, opening the window to let his brother in. Kero slid in and shook dew off his fur. "Thanks Yue. Aura, wake up. Aura?" he shook her awake. Aura made a sound half way between a groan and a growl.

"What is it?" She muttered. Kero pulled the covers off her head.

"Aura, While I was flying I noticed Freezes lake is still iced over. With thick ice. And I saw Jump springing up though the trees. But anyway, there shouldn't be any ice right now. There wasn't any a week and a half ago. Did you change Freeze?" He asked. Aura grunted and rolled over, trying to pull the covers back over her head, but Kero wouldn't let her.

"Aura, maybe you don't know this, but changing the cards without reason, and with your low magic levels especially, can be dangerous. Aura, are you listening?" He shook her back awake. She growled and rolled back over stubbornly trying to sleep.

"Aura, you can't go changing cards without a good reason. It could confuse them and make them go berserk. Aura? Are you listening?" He whined. Aura twitched her tail and made a noise between a growl and a howl, something that translated roughly into a protest in wolf.

'Better than nothing.' Kero thought, turning back to his own corner for a nap.

-------

Yue narrowed his eyes for a moment, looking over at Aura.

' Disrespectful too.' He noted, turning his gaze back to the floor.


	9. Chaos

8- Chaos

Kero tucked in his wings, concentrating on a rabbit down below. He dove down with his claws ready. He snared the animal and bit it's throat in a couple seconds. The other rabbits all bolted for their holes as Aura dove, her claws raking the fur on one as it slipped underground just in time.

"D'arvit!" She swore, landing next to Kero. Kero looked up concerned.

"Aura, it may be just me," He began, "-But lately your hunting seems to be getting worse and worse. You're using up too much energy every night, and this isn't all I mean by it being harmful to you." He continued. Aura tried to yelp in a point but Kero kept talking.

"Not only is it tiring you out, but if the cards get stuck halfway between Star and Aura cards, they could get confused and attack anything and everything in sight. You can't go change them without a good reason." He finished, while holding the rabbit that he had caught out of reach to keep Aura listening.

"I do have a good reason," She growled. "They're starving and I need to keep them from dying. If that isn't a good reason then nothing is. Now give me my share of the rabbit." She said, hooking her claws into the rabbits flank. Kero surrendered it to Aura as he began to search for sticks to put in a fire.

---------

Aura flapped her wings, rising into the starry black night. She turned her tail feathers; coasting off into the clearing where she changed her cards every night.

"Even if it is dangerous, I won't let my pack starve. Kero doesn't know what he's talking about. I have a good enough reason." She muttered to herself. Then she thought another moment. "Well, Kero probably knows what he's talking about, but this is good enough reason for me." She corrected herself.

--------

Aura dropped tiredly onto the grass and pine needles at the clearing's edge. She shook her head, trying to clear out the cobwebs settling on her brain from lack of sleep.

'After this, I'll take a nice long nap in the woods and go to school about third hour. Yeah, that'll work.' She thought to herself, pulling out her staff and Earth.

She held her staff-blades in her teeth, and the card in the teeth at the front of her mouth, tossing the card into the air, tiredly.

--

Kero circled irritably overhead, watching Aura change yet another card, just after he had warned her not to. She was swaying on her feet as she tossed it into the air.

'If she plans on skipping class tomorrow,' He thought sourly, 'then she'd better think again.'

He watched as she touched her nose to Earth… and as she swayed on her feet doing it. Then his ears perked worriedly.

Something was wrong…

--

Aura slumped and lashed her tail for balance as she staggered back. She felt power flowing through her staff as she changed Earth. Her legs gave way and she dropped to the ground. There was one loud shriek of confusion, panic and instinct before she felt Earth's power surge through her staff and into her teeth, her fur, her paws, tail, eyes, and all through her.

And then she blacked out.

--

Kero shivered as he felt Earth plow her way into Aura. This was bad. This was so bad news.

--

"Uh oh, that looks bad." Eriol muttered, watching in his magic circle as Earth took over Aura, turning her face to the sky. He watched as Aura's staff turned brown at the main rod, and stone gray at the blades. As Earth glared up at Kero and snarled, turning to rush to the cliff area in the east.

"I think you might want to follow her, and make sure this doesn't get too out of control." Eriol said over his shoulder.

-----

Earth loped through the trees, making a long, mad dash to the bare, stony cliffs where she could use her power. She could hear Keroberos flying overhead, tracking her, probably figuring out by now where she was headed.

Earth poured on speed, waving Auras tail wildly for balance.

---

Kero dove for the stony rocks of the cliffs, set on blocking Earth from a place where her power could be used.

"Dang it! I told her this would happen, but would she listen? Noooooo! Dang it!" He growled, landing in Earths path.

----

A shadowed figure watched Kero fight with Earth. With a grinding sound, he pulled out his sword, and a slip of paper with some writing on it.

----

Kero growled, lunging at Earth, trying to pry the staff out of Aura's jaws. 'This is just what happens with Sword.' He thought, swiping at her mouth. 'Break physical contact and Aura will regain control. In the mean time,' He ducked a heavy swipe from Earth. 'It seems that Aura's trying to fight Earth off. Or maybe it's just that Aura's body's hard to control. Oh well, no complaints. WHOA!' Kero dodged a sharp set of claws, loosing some of the short fur near his nose in the process.

Earth shrieked and pounced on Kero, but was thrown off balance by a sudden wind. Earth regained her footing and whipped her head up to the cliffs, snarling at the figure standing there.

-----

'Oh no, Earth is in Aura, she'll catch my smell! I can't believe I forgot about that!' He thought, jumping into the trees before he was seen. 'Now I'll have to wait till she's distracted again.'

------

Kero dodged to the side of one of Earths swipes, and Earth took the opportunity to use Auras tail and sweep his feet out from under him. Kero flopped onto the ground with a thud. Earth darted past him, leaping onto the cliff face and sinking her power into it.

Kero pounced, trying to grab Earth off the cliff before she could attack. Earth growled, and a long, sharp lump of stone shot out at the guardian. Kero barely had time to dodge as it clipped a couple feathers from his wing. Earth grinned nastily and pushed more of her power into the cliff. Another shard of stone came at Keroberos…

Kero flapped out of the way of the main point, but the edges rammed his stomach, and the next spike crashed into his head.

The guardian fell, dazed, to the ground below. Earth grinned and stood on her ledge as it grew out of the cliff. She peered down at the nearly unconscious form below and smirked, taking aim at him… But the…

A blazing pain on her shoulders! The feel of blood seeping into the fur. A stumble forward. Turning to look behind. A human. A sword. Another cut, this time on the chest.

Earth gasped, stumbling backwards over the lip of the ledge, gazing, dazed, up at the person who had gotten her. His sword gleamed in the moonlight as he held up a slip of paper with writing on it, throwing it into the air and putting the flat of his blade to it. A wind knocked Earth, belly up, into the ground, and kept pushing her out of Aura. Earth gasped as she felt her hold on Aura weaken.

The smell of blood. Her blood, and her packs. And fear.

Aura fought to regain control when she realized her body wasn't hers. She pushed at Earth, trying to force the card out of her head. Earth shrieked and held on bitterly for control.

Kero snarled holding a paw over Aura's neck. He glared into her eyes, and earth growled through Aura's voice, admitting defeat and reverting to a card as Aura slipped into unconsciousness.

The staff slid onto the grass, returning to its blue-golden yellow coloration.

----------

Aura groaned and rolled onto her side, opening one bleary eye to look about the room. Kero lay curled up next to her bed, staring into space, and Yue was fast asleep in his corner again. Her head flopped back onto the pillow tiredly as she drifted back to sleep.

------------

Eriol watched As Aura began to snore softly. His circle faded out as he looked up at the sound of the door opening.

"Ah, you're back. I hope that wasn't too much trouble." He said.

Syoran laid his sword against the wall and held his arms out into the air in a stretch. "Nah," He said turning to leave the room. "But I think you're right, She is going to need scenarios set up for her to change the cards. Safely. You might want to keep an eye on her, make sure this doesn't happen again at some other time." He said, closing the door behind him tiredly.

"Yes, I suppose you're right." Eriol murmured thoughtfully.


	10. Buddies'

9- 'Buddies'

Aura laid her head on the desk and almost whined aloud. Her eyes blinked tiredly. Kero watched from her bag, making sure she didn't fall asleep again. She winced as the bell rang, and the students settled into their seats. She almost growled as someone sat next to her. She turned her head slightly to see who the heck it was.

A human, brown hair, one lock braided over her shoulder and a grin on her face. She smiled over at Aura. Aura grunted and turned sleepily back to the blackboard at the front of the room.

"Hey, I'm Ruby! What's your name?" She asked cheerfully. Aura turned her head slightly and growled out, "Aura." And then turned back to the board.

"So, what lunch hour do you have?" She pressed. Aura grunted incoherently, turning her head to face the opposite wall. Ruby 'hmphped' and turned to the board, beginning her work for the class. Aura sighed, closing her eyes.

Kero reached out a paw quickly and tapped her awake again. Aura stirred and tried to lift her head, flopping her chin onto the table again.

'D'arvit, I feel like I'm made of lead…' she thought tiredly. She felt her eyes closing again. Kero 'Pst'ed her again, and she pried them open.

Aura almost growled aloud, especially when Ruby persisted in her interrogation.

"Are you okay? Why aren't you talking…? Are you sick or something? Hello?" She asked, reaching over and shaking Aura's shoulder lightly.

Aura did growl aloud. Ruby snatched her hand away as Aura turned slowly and glared at her, her teeth showing just the slightest, razor sharp edges.

---------

The bell had rung at last. Aura headed for the bathroom, clutching her key in her pocket.

Kero poked his head out as she transformed her staff, though Kero protested about this.

"Oh no, not another card! Aura, don't think I'm letting you use Mirror to skip class again! You are going to stay at school, you hear me? Are you listening? You're ignoring me again aren't you?" He sighed.

Aura pulled out her book, selecting an empty, already blue and yellow portrait, and softly reciting her spell. Once she was finished a blue and pink force floated though her staff, pulling her into two. She smiled at Twin, then flashed a tired grin at Kero.

"There, I'm at school. Happy now?" She said, poking his head back into the pocket and zipping him almost completely in except an air hole. One Aura slung the pack over her shoulder and left for fourth hour while the other darted out the doors a minuet or so later, making a mad dash behind the windowless wall of the school for the field and the shelter of the unmowed grass there.

-----------

Aura smiled as she walked sleepily to her next class. She pawed through her pack, pulling up her math book. Kero scowled up from the pocket he was in.

"You use magic, and that's why you're tired, so using more magic to rest is actually counter productive. You know that right?" he questioned. Aura shrugged and began flipping through her book for her homework when she heard a scuffle to her left.

"What do you know, we have the same fourth hour too! Ruby chirped. Aura was startled for a moment, caught between curiosity, disbelief, suspicion, annoyance and paranoid emotions… But in the end a suspicious paranoia won out.

"Go sit somewhere else." Aura half whined, half begged. Ruby sat where she was and smiled. Aura sighed, puling out her math book and staring at the numbers, than began working on her homework before the end of passing period.

"You didn't do your homework?" Ruby asked leaning over. Aura growled curtly and ignored her. Ruby leaned over closer. "Why didn't you do that last night? It's not good to put off your homework, you'll rush and do a bad job later." She pestered. Aura could feel her fur beginning to bristle along her back.

"Excuse me," She said, swerving around to snarl at Ruby. "I'm trying to do my homework here. I don't know you. I don't want to. I don't like you. Leave me alone." She snarled. She was tempted to add, 'Or I'll rip your face to ribbons' but thought better of it at the last minuets and turned to finish her homework.

----------

The other Aura galloped along in the woods, seeking out a place to sleep undisturbed, and settled for the hollow in her playing tree. As she climbed up, she even pondered staying awake long enough to play some tunes on her forked flute before her nap, but decided against it in the end. She slid into the hollow and curled up for a nap.

-----------

Kero Flew alongside Aura as she walked home from school. He looked around nervously as she walked, trying to figure out what seemed amiss. He fluttered down to Aura.

"Aura? Do you smell or feel anything weird?" He asked, landing on her shoulder. She glanced up and shrugged as she walked behind the orphanage to the giant tree in the back. She looked up at it and bounced up, grabbing onto the bark with her claws. Kero fluttered up and then backpedaled out of her way as she lost her grip and tumbled to the ground.

"Aura? You okay?" He asked as she rolled to her feet again. She nodded and sprung again, clinging a little unsteadily to the branches. Kero fluttered up and caught her by her shirt collar as she lost her footing again. She flopped backwards onto the ground and stared up at the window, rubbing her head confusedly.

"Huh? Wha? Why can't I get up?" She wondered distractedly. Kero fluttered in front of her and then turned up to the tree.

The tree looked the same as always, and it wasn't giving off any weird feelings. So did that mean something was wrong with Aura? He looked over at her as she got up and got ready to try to spring up the tree again. He looked closer at her, trying to feel if anything was wrong with her.

There was.

He could feel her magic was getting unstable. Sort of bubbling in a way. She sprang up the tree and slipped back down with a yowl.

Aura, something's wrong with your magic. Where's the other Aura?" He asked. Aura shrugged.

"Dunno. Why?" She asked, getting up again. Kero looked out to the woods worriedly.

"I think it may have something to do with Twin. You're running low on magic right now, and dividing what you have is probably a bad idea. You should probably get back into one piece soon." He muttered. Aura nodded and they set off into the woodlands where the other Aura was sure to be.

---------

Aura slid down from her tree, clinging to the branches shakily. She fell to the ground with a thud, pulling herself to her feet and shaking her head and stumbling forward. She held her nose in the air, searching for anything weird on the breeze. She could smell Kero coming.

"Aura, you two get back in one piece now. You're losing magic fast." He ordered. Aura growled and shook her head, trying to clear it. She knew the yellow thing, she was sure. But it was not normal for something to have her scent except her. The other one at the yellow things side did. She growled and braced, bolting away from the strange other into the woods.

"Aura!" Kero screeched, dashing after her. The Aura next to him also bristled, standing with her hands in her pockets, slouched meanly. Kero put his hands up to the other Aura. "Stay!" He ordered, chasing after the one that had bolted.

------------

Aura raced through the trees and panted, hearing something in pursuit. She turned and saw the yellow thing chasing her. She turned back ahead and poured on speed. She was losing the yellow thing

-------------

Kero flew after Aura, going into his true form as he flew. He sped up, readying his claws to snatch her scruff. He closed in and struck, hauling the snarling, writhing Aura into the air. She growled and yelped as he dropped her near the other one.

----------

'What is that?' Aura thought, as a big yellow vaguely familiar beast landed, with a smaller angry one in its paws. She tensed and took a step back, then fled away from the creatures.

-----------

Kero turned to the tree the human Aura had been standing, and found it empty.

"Arrrgh!" He growled, looking for something to tie up the one he had. Finding nothing, he flew with the beast one in his claws instead. She whined and tucked her tail between her legs as they rose higher.

----------

"Okay, twin, when I drop this Aura on that one down there, you gotta blend them together, okay?" Kero said, aiming the calmed beast in his claws. Twin nodded and Kero let go, sending one Aura cashing into the other.

"Ow…" Aura groaned and sat up. Kero settled down on the ground next to her and glanced over.

"You okay?" He asked. Aura nodded and he continued, "I told you this was a bad idea. You need to start listening once in a while. I know what I'm talking about time to time you know…"

Aura groaned and flopped dramatically over with a groan. 'Not another lecture…' she whined to herself as Kero rambled on.


	11. All bets are off

10- All bets are off

"Whyyyyyy?" Aura whined from under the covers as Kero shook her shoulders roughly. The great cat rolled his eyes, then grabbed the blanket in his paw and tugged it out of the sleepy chimeras paws tiredly.

"Because, you need to go to school! You know that, even if you don't like it." He grunted as he dumped the blanket on the floor and pushed Aura's paw away from the light switch.

Yue looked over and gave a small, annoyed "Huff" sound. 'Every morning.' He though, annoyed. 'Why doesn't she just get up on her own?'

Aura and Kero were having a tug o' war of sorts. Aura clung to the bed with her front claws, and her hind paws were dangling behind her as Kero tried to tug her off by the tail. Eventually Kero won and Aura was sent sprawling onto the floor, and blocked from getting back to sleep by Kero, who had jumped onto the bed and spread his wings to the sides to block any return.

"Why do you have to do this every morning, huh? You're going to get up anyway! Besides, surely school's not that bad!" Kero said, catching his breath. Aura looked back at him with a glare of disbelief, annoyance, and, perhaps, a slight hint of mischief.

"It is too. You'd know that if you ever went as a student. But what would a plush toy-cat know about that?" She taunted. Kero bristled and almost let out a small growl.

"Whaaaaat! Look, I don't know what your problem is, but I know it can't be as bad as you act like it is! I'd looooooooove to prove it too," He said with a shrug. "- But, it's impossible for me to do that. If I could go a day just to prove you wrong I would" He said

Aura glowered. "You're just saying that. You wouldn't, even if you could!" She insisted.

"Oh yes I would, if I could… but being a cat and all I-"

"-Can!" Aura interrupted.

She grinned, letting her full mischievous intent onto her face as she began to explain. "You sure can prove it all right! I know just the way! If you can handle school for a day and still honestly say that it's not that bad, then you can get me up on time for a week without a fight! So, you wanna put your money where your mouth is? Or are those chicken wings on your back?" She taunted with a grin, jabbing a paw in the yellow lions direction. Kero recoiled in shock, his mouth hanging open.

"Wha? You… Huh? But- but I- uh…"

There was no good answer for this one. And it wasn't helping to have Harriss cackling behind him.

"So? You wanna take the bet?" She asked.

"…You planned this, didn't you?" He accused, pouting in Auras direction. Aura merely smirked, raising her eyestripes. "Okay, fine, what's this idea of yours then?" He asked. Aura grinned and hopped over to the Aura cards, then picked up an empty blue gold card, already changed. It was Change.

The teal lizard hoped onto her desk with his usual greeting. Aura shook the tongue off her face, and Kero scowled as it wiped over his. "'Lllooooo" Change bleated. Change gazed blindly around the room, and then, sensing a third presence, turned his head that way.

Yue stiffened as a somewhat slimy tongue shlucked onto his face. It drew away and Kero had to hold his muzzle to keep from laughing at his brothers' expression. It could only be described, as indescribable.

Change turned back to Kero and Aura questioningly. Aura grinned and plucked him up, carrying him over to Kero. Kero shuddered and nodded to Change.

'Me and my big mouth! When did she think of this one?' He wondered as Change began to swap the two.

--------

"Okay, you don't have to use lockers anymore, so just go to first hour with your pack on. It has everything I- you'll need. You remember where it is?" Aura asked from her pocket. Her new round yellow ears twitched up and down. Kero walked into first hour and sat down nervously.

"And remember, act casual, don't over-act or anything. Okay?" She continued quietly. Kero nodded and turned slightly.

"I'm not stupid ya' know. And yes, I'm sure of that." He added, before Aura could make a joke and ask about it. Aura's ears drooped and she tucked her head back into her pocket. Kero walked over to a table and plopped down in the seat Aura always sat in. The teacher began to drone and Kero found his interest slipping before even five minutes had passed.

'All right, no denying school's boring,' Kero thought to himself 'But it's sure not worth the fuss she puts up about it every morning. I wonder why she thought I'd think it was worth all the fuss? And why'd she put me up on a bet where she has nothing to gain? There must be something she's not saying. Maybe she's in a fight and doesn't want to fight? Nah, she wouldn't chicken out against a human… so why?'

The class looked up as an office aid walked in and handed the history teacher a note.

"Miss Chimera, here ya' go." He said, handing the note to Kero. Kero looked over it and almost groaned aloud.

'Oh, so that's why…'

--------------------

"The principals office is the first door on the left." Aura piped up helpfully. Kero growled, toying with the idea of giving her a good whack upside the head, but decided against it since his job was to protect her. And she'd defiantly make him pay if he did.

"Why are you getting sent to the office anyway?" He whispered. Aura shrugged.

"Dunno, Let's see when we get there." She said, giving a nonchalant shrug, but Kero could feel her tail wagging in her pocket.

---------------

"Miss Chimera?" The principal greeted, gesturing for her to take a seat opposite of his desk. Kero sat down and stared blankly at the principal.

"I'm sure you know why you're here. Your absence count is becoming a problem to your education. Is anything wrong?" He asked, looking Kero in the eye.

"Uhhh…" Kero trailed blankly. To himself he thought, 'She wants me to deal with this! What am I going to say?!?' He thought panickedly

"I got bored and ditched!" He quipped, immediately wishing he could take the words back. Aura still felt relaxed in his pocket though, so he must not be doing too badly. Yet.

"I mean, uh, I started feeling sick sometimes, headaches and stuff, and went home again, uh, what I mean- meant to say is, uh-"

The principal folded his hands across the desk and gave a long sigh.

"Miss Chimera, Are you aware that if you're absent just two more times than you'll have to repeat this year? Do you realize that would mean you would have to attend summer school to catch up? I'm not sure you understand just how serious this habit can be. Your education-" The principal started to ramble.

Kero stared blankly ahead, 'this guy sure goes on and on. I wonder if she just didn't want to hear him rant. She is asleep in her pocket right now, I can tell that much. I can't blame her either… This guy is BORING!' He thought to himself. 'Looks like he's almost done now. Better tune back in…'

"If you don't graduate then you might not be able to choose any sort of decent career. I care about your future. Do you understand? I want you to promise you won't ditch classes anymore. Can you do that?" He asked.

'No' Kero thought.

"Yup." He said. He felt Aura stirring in his pocket, before turning over and sinking back into sleep.

"Well then, I want you to go back to class now."

Kero got up and walked to the second hour. Ruby seemed to be absent today. That was good. Something about her gave him a weird gut instinct.

----------------

"You promised WHAT!" Aura screeched. Kero set her bag down on her bed with the same nonchalant shrug she had given him. He winced as she shrieked and squealed angrily at him.

'Wow, my ears hurt now. But it's still worth it.' He thought with a grin, tossing Aura her staff, and picking up Change. Now that she was master, Change could change them back anytime she told him too. She hefted the staff blade in Kero's true form, wincing when she found the teeth grooves didn't fit at all. She touched noses with Change, and regaining her original body.

------

Kero spit the staff out. Aura bent down and picked it up in her teeth, glaring scarily at him. Furiously even.

"Oh come on! You're the one that tricked me into this! Don't you think it's fair I get to play a trick too?" He shot back.

Aura pawed thought the book, pulling up a pink card and tossing it into the air, touching noses with it. Kero's eyes widened.

"No," Aura said, as a pale red and white color went through the staff. Kero watched, as the blades grew longer. Sword grinned evilly from the staff.

"No, I don't think it's very fair at all…" Aura said, turning at him with the sword in her jaws, grinning manically.

----------

Yue narrowed his eyes at the sky as he watched his master chasing his brother through the sky, trying to lop off a limb or two with Sword. His neutral expression changed to a frown as he turned back to his corner again.

'Anyone would have been better…' He thought, with a touch of anger. 'Anyone…'


	12. decisions

11- Decisions

Yue watched from the window as Aura and Keroberos flew over the woods, diving at small animals scurrying below. Kero came up carrying something in his claws.

'Now they'll fight over dividing it, and she'll try to grab it away from Keroberos. Keroberos will try to get it back, and probably get about half. Then they'll come home arguing about it and fall asleep.' He thought, watching Aura fly closer to Kero.

Indeed, they fought, wound up with about half each, and flew back to the window, growling and snarling over the kill.

'Keroberos tries to open the window; she laughs at him, opens the window and they come in. She says hello, then goes back to arguing.' He thought resentfully. The window opened.

"Hey Yue. But I'm saying that if you want the whole thing, fly faster." She yipped at Kero. Kero kept on arguing with her, as Aura flopped down onto the bed arguing back. Kero curled up in the pile of toy carnivores in the opposite corner.

Yue kept silent, and soon they were asleep. He looked up at the window and sighed sadly.

'This is nothing like it was when you were here, Clow…'

------

Aura and Keroberos were both soundly asleep by now. The afternoon sun shone through the window as Yue rose and walked to it. He opened the window silently and rose into the air quietly. The moon was barely visible in the sky as he flew.

Below, in the field, rabbits scurried into their holes fearfully as his shadow passed over them. Yue watched them scurry as he flew past. He flew for a while, before settling on an outcropping of stone to watch the moon as it was rising.

As he watched the moon rise, a thin waning crescent, he began to remember and think about how life had been so long ago. Back when Clow had made him- just him- for a few years. Then Keroberos had come, and then, later, the cards. It seemed such a long time ago now. Too short then. Much too short now. And then one night, no warning, Clow…

He shook his head and looked back at the rising moon. Aura and Keroberos would wake soon. He had better get back.

-----------

Aura was just stirring when Yue closed the window. He slunk back to his corner silently and settled in, just as she twitched and ear and cracked an eye open. She gave a big yawn and slid onto the floor, looking out the window for the time of night. She tapped Keroberos awake with her foot.

Kero snuffled a little and shook himself awake, plodding over to the window. She opened it and Kero slid out.

"I'll hunt down at the far field today, I'm still hungry. The rabbits are thicker there." He said, opening his wings and lifting into the sky. Aura spread her own wings a moment later and took off towards the clearing near the river. Yue watched them go, and then closed the window behind them.

-----------

Aura surveyed the clearing form an angel. A few straggling rabbits grazed about. She sighted on the wrong side of the river, and tucked in her wings, sailing over to it silently. It squealed as she hoisted it higher into the air. Her claws let go of it, and it went crashing onto a rock below. She scooped it up and landed in a tree, munching her prey thoughtfully. Her face turned up to the thin sliver of the moon overhead.

She finished up the last of the rabbit and took off again, circling back home, scanning the horizon, but seeing Kero a retreating blip on the horizon.

'He'll be a while. Better get going.' She thought.

--------

Yue looked up as he heard a scrape of claws at the window. Aura slid in, licking the last scraps of meat from her lips. He sighed quietly. 'Anyone would have been better…'

Aura looked over and tilted her head. "Somethin' wrong?" She asked. Yue looked up.

'I can't lie to my master. But I don't think it would be a good idea to say I hate her…' He thought. "Maybe." He responded after a moments thought.

Aura walked over to the opposite wall, thumbing through the books on the extra shelf. She paused mid-way through the line, thinking.

"You don't like me, do you." She said. Yue looked up, somewhat startled she had pinned it down.

"No," he said slowly, "I don't… how did you know?" He stared at the floor as Aura traced her finger along the shelf absently.

"It's, you know, your smell; the smell around your area says that usually, you're pretty clam and relaxed and stuff," She paused in her tracing again, "But when I come in, it's like you get tense and a bit angry. Why don't you like me? Specifically, I mean."

Yue blinked in the dark room, then narrowed his eyes. She had asked, so why not say what he thought.

"You act like an animal." He started, "There's no structure or order here. You're ruthless and vicious. You misuse the cards, on a daily basis, and you never seem to care what anyone try's to tell you! You're arrogant and," He said bitterly. "There's nothing I can do about it either way. You don't listen to anyone, and it's not like I can leave..."

"…Why not?" Aura asked, tracing her finger down the next shelf. Yue looked up startled. "I mean," she continued, "I'd like it if you could find a way to stay here and be happy, but if you really hate it here, you're always free to leave. Anyone actually. Just as long as you don't cause trouble for the rest of the pack, or drag anyone with you kicking and screaming or something. I'm not forcing you to stay or go anywhere." She stopped tracing the bookshelf again, gazing at a book in front of her.

"I can leave?" Yue asked doubtfully.

Aura nodded.

'…'Yue got up and strode over to the window, looking back at Aura for a second. Then, he opened the window and took flight, his back to the waning moon. Aura looked up sadly after him for a moment, then sighed and closed the window behind him.

----------

"Hey Aura, I'm back! The hunting was great! I- hey, where's Yue?" Kero asked as he dropped to the floor.

Aura looked at the desk and was silent for a moment. "He left." She said simply.

Kero was stunned for a moment. Then, looking around, seeing Aura's sad expression, combined with the fact Yue wasn't in the room, he sighed sadly to himself.

"Is he coming back?" He asked. Aura shrugged and crawled over to her bed.

"I dunno, he wasn't happy here. When I told him anyone was free to leave if they wanted to, he left."

Kero stared down at the floor and walked silently over to his spot, flopping onto the floor tiredly.

"So, he left then, just like that?" He asked again. Aura nodded. Kero laid his head on his paws tiredly.

"Get some sleep Kero, tomorrows going to be a long day."

-------------

Eriol rubbed his eyes tiredly. "No, this can't be happening. He can't possibly know what he's doing…" He muttered to himself. Spinnel gazed down at the portal and shook his head.

"Do you think he'll be alright? He's never been on his own before, has he?" Spinnel asked. Eriol shook his head and thought for a moment.

"Syoran! Can I ask a favor of you?" He called. Sayoran walked quietly over. "Yeah?" He asked.

"Could you follow Yue, make sure he doesn't get into trouble?" Eriol asked. Sayoran nodded.

"Yeah, okay." He said quietly, picking up his sword as he walked out the door.


	13. Moving on

12- moving forward

Yue beat his wings. He soared over a city below, watching the clouds in the sky around him. The ocean below crashed onto the shore far beneath him. 'How to cross it though?' He wondered briefly, peering at the endless expanse of water. It would definitely be too far to fly, and, there would almost certainly be too few resting spots.

A freight ship churned water behind it as it sailed in the docks. Yue peered down at it and began to glide closer.

----------

Aura trudged though the school day tiredly. Kero appeared to be snoozing silently in her pocket now. 'Lucky him.' She thought, rolling her eyes as she turned the corner. School again. Noise again. Humans again. Boredom again. Nothing new. Same as always.

She gazed through the window at the far end of the hall longingly. Trees whispered in the breeze and gray clouds promised rain later. Birds sung in the branches. Outside.

She pondered slipping off again, but she knew Kero didn't need the stress right now. It seemed he had done nothing but eat, sleep, and fly around lately. Well, that wasn't much different than he ever was as far as she knew, but he had been… quieter, since Yue had left.

The teacher lectured again. She stuffed her homework into her bag. Again. She gazed out the windows again, ignored the humans again. Pondered whipping out her claws and raking them down some annoying face. Mainly the chatterbox sitting next to her. Again. Her paws twitched as she pictured the pest screeching, holding her face, while she herself took off though the doors into the wild woods. It almost made her break out of her stony mask, and into an evil smirk.

As the teacher droned on she watched the clock intently. The minutes ticked away slowly till lunch. She followed the rest of the school, migrating to the crowded lunchrooms. Taking the usual seat, picking bits of the food off for Kero while saving some of the more edible parts for herself.

Then, at the end of the school day, she pricked her ears as she walked through the woods. They had been walking in the dwindling light for a few hours now. Kero rustled in her pocket and looked blearily about. The air, seeming to whine shrilly in her ear, made her wince. She whipped her head about, sniffing at the air tensely. The air seemed to pulse for a moment before she saw it.

A mound of boulders dragged themselves from the ground sluggishly. They reared up into a massive golem, blocking Aura's path with a grinding growl. She lashed her tail, shaking her pack off her shoulders as she sprouted her fur and fangs. Kero flapped into the air and landed in his true form.

Aura snarled at the monster in her path and took her ready stance. Kero hunched down, ready to spring to her side. The golem rushed forward. Aura sprang to the left as its fist broke the hard earth she had stood on. Kero roared and flew at its face, clawing as he flapped past. It swerved a moment to follow Kero and Aura swerved behind. She roared and lunged onto its back. It shook mightily; dislodging the chimera before she could get a grip on its stony hide.

Aura rolled to her feet and roared defiantly. Kero looked over as he landed on the golems other side. "Aura! Magic! It's being controlled!" He barked. Aura bounced away from the next fist and ducked her head, pulling up her staff blades in the next moment. She lashed her tail and listed the cards in her mind.

She jumped onto a fist as t came crashing, and bounded into the air. She dropped a pink card in front of herself, tapping her nose to him as she fell.

Magic encircled her blades, turning them a faded green along the edges, and tan brown at the core.

---

Create studied the golem in front of him. Like out of a storybook. So, a fable against a fable then? Very well, a story face off it would be. He closed Aura's eyes, remembering an old story written in his pages from almost a year ago.

Quickly the fable formed in front of the golem. The olive colored dragon lifted his head high into the air, staring at the golem with his spiral eyes.

Create hopped into the air, landing on a high branch with ease, watching and directing his dragon to the fight. Kero also took off, landing in another tree. Three pairs of eyes watched the battle from safe distances.

----------

"How can Create do that?" Eriol muttered aloud, baffled. He didn't remember Create being able to do that. Not only that, but it wasn't actually night yet, just dusk. Perhaps it was the cards being out anytime they wanted to? Getting exercise? Getting stronger? Worth a thought.

But for now…

------------

The dragon caught one of the golems fists in his claws, ducking and biting a large rock from its belly. The golem ground itself to readjust its shape again, swinging another fist down at the dragon's head. Create shuddered as it hit, and the dragon gave a weak roar.

'This isn't cutting it! What else can I use?' Create thought, franticly turning the pages in his mind. He grinned as he remembered the dragon in the later part of the story she had written in. When she had needed to vent on a different day.

The dragon reared back and sneered nastily as it aimed its machine gun at the golem. A rain of bullets pounded the magic rocks, as the olive colored dragon roared delightedly. Create grinned, glad Aura had written her own ending for knights and dragons.

The dragon leaned forward and grinned into the smoke. Nothing remained of his enemy but a pile of rubble now. It roared triumphantly, firing a few shots into the air for fun, before Create grinned, dropping himself back into the staff, and slipping into his blue-gold card, satisfied.

--

Aura shook her head, waking herself up. Kero landed among the rubble easily, though she wobbled as she set down on the forest floor.

"Well, it broke the monotony at least." Kero chirped helpfully. Aura nodded, rubbing her eyes tiredly.

---------

Eriol leaned back into his chair, satisfied with his work. Another card had been changed. 'Create, huh? I never would have thought to do that. Very good.' He mused to himself.

------------

Yue flapped off the barge as it drew near to the port on the islands. Very distantly, he thought he could see the shore of another island. The warm island air irritated him, so he flew higher, hoping to find colder temperatures higher up. He began to soar out to the next island in the chain, moonlight to his back and wind to his side.

--------

Sayoran peered up as Yue continued a, roughly, eastern flight. He sighed, leaning against the wall.

He'd have to catch up with him later, tomorrow.


	14. Grass fires

13- Grass fires

The woods flashed below Aura as she cruised through the mountain foothills, looking for food. She glided higher; making sure her shadow wasn't scaring away prey. She huffed angrily when she didn't spot so much as a twitch of a whisker below her.

Kero glided up next to her, looking just as exasperated.

"Where'd the food go?" He yowled.

Aura growled frustratedly at the sky. The woods were bare today. She just couldn't figure out where everything went. There wasn't a storm coming, no loose dogs scaring prey away. There wasn't even a stiff breeze to make their fur itch! What the heck was going on?

---------

Yue alighted on the branch of a tree, breathing hard from his flight. It had been much farther than he had previously thought. He couldn't see where he could go next, either. He wasn't even sure where he was really going at this point. All he had decided was to leave, and to go east.

Finally, Yue decided to look around for another ship to ride across on. They were fast enough. He rested a few more moments, and then flew into the air again.

----------

Aura glided closer to the treetops. She scanned for any animal life, any at all. There was none to be found, predator or prey. The fur along her back bristled as her ears caught a high-pitched whine in the air. She winced at the high-pitched noise screeched through the air. She was about to grab her ears, to block out the painful noise, when something caught on her paw.

She whipped around and saw a long tendril of grass, longer than the trees were high, holding onto her paw. She kicked her foot, beating her wings, trying to get higher into the sky. She flew a little higher, but another vine shot out, grabbing her opposite front paw. She yowled and writhed in the air, shaking the vines and grass free a moment, before she was grabbed around the middle by yet another vine.

She yowled loudly when she saw vines and grasses reaching up everywhere. They reared up through the trees like snakes, writhing towards her. The high whining filled her ears as she surged with her wings, trying to get away. She gnawed at the tendril latched onto her, biting through it, escaping higher into the sky.

Her wings surged, shooting her straight up through the sky, trying to escape their reach. The vines were faster, snaking out and catching her foot. They dragged the chimera back towards the carpet of vegetation. She squealed, and Kero leapt onto the thick vine holding Aura, biting viciously with a fireball in his mouth. The vine was burnt through in an instant, but three more caught Aura, one grabbing her wing, leaving her helpless in the sky. Kero roared and thrashed against vines as they wrapped around him. He let out one last fireball, freeing Auras paws, but missing the vine at her wing.

Aura grabbed at the slight freedom. She summoned her staff instantly, searching for a card. She tossed it into the air and tapped it with her nose, focusing her power into it. She felt the familiar rush of magic running through her, twisting into her mind.

Her staff changed. Transparent red shaft, with fierce orange- yellow blades.

--

Fire turned at the vine that had Auras wing, letting out a burst of fire past the staff. The vine withered in the heat, releasing the wing. She soared higher up; and then looped back in the air and rocketed at Kero. She roared and sent out a giant fireball, setting aflame the vines holding the beast.

Fire dove down into the tree, scorching any plants that moved or twisted.

She ripped through the vegetation on the ground. Vines, grass, roots, anything. Dry vegetation withered under the flames she sent out.

Fire then flew up, surveying her handiwork below. She concentrated the fires below, telling them to settle down, and dissipate.

--------

Yue alighted on another ship as it churned the waters. The sea winds brushed at his face, messing his hair up and biting at his face. He pondered going back to main land for a while.

'No,' he decided. 'I'm probably over halfway across the ocean anyway.'

-------

Syoran floated near a cloud, sitting atop his wind spell. His sword was gripped loosely in hand as he gazed across the ocean wearily, and wondered if they were there yet.


	15. What bugs you

The chimera loped through the woods, meandering through, letting her nose lead her about. Her ears swiveled to catch the sounds in the under growth. Crickets chirped their songs into the air that the spring afternoon. Trees murmured in the light breezes, brought sounds and scents to the chimera as she leisurely strolled about. She looked up into the warm sunshine and let her tongue loll out to the side. She panted lightly, resuming her trek.

----------

Yue glided off the boat, landing on a beach. The island looked large enough to be near the mainland. A small village glimmered in the ruins of a city several miles away. The sun would be rising soon.

'I need to find a spot to rest.' He thought as lifting off once again. He tilted his wings, heading towards some ruins in the distance. Skyscrapers drew his eye. They were lonely, vacant. He would see anyone approaching, though the chances were slim.

----

Syaoran groaned and held his head as he watched Yue landing on a tall tower in the distance. This would make him hard to follow today.

----------

Bees buzzed about Aura's nose as she walked along the forest trail. She flicked an ear and veered from the trail. No sense in getting too close and getting stung after all.

She huffed in annoyance as the buzzing persisted about her. She peered around and felt her fur rise. All around her were bees, hornets and wasps. She heard the telltale sound of trouble behind the buzzing. The high keening sounds again.

She whipped her head around, looking for movement, a threat. Her gaze swept past the stinging insects.

'I can out fly them, can't I? I think I can make it. I'm fast, and the can't fly too high I think. Can they?' She wondered, tensing her muscles.

She swept out her wings and got ready to leap into the air. She sucked in a breath when she felt an itch crawling up her legs.

Ants! Hundreds of them were making their way up through her fur. Red ones, black ones, bluish ones. She screeched and flapped franticly into the air, trailing thick tangles of insects on her legs. She broke through the treetops, trying to shake the insects off. They clung to her fur, her skin, weighing her down through sheer numbers.

She yowled as she felt a sting. Wasps and hornets began to out fly her, stinging her. Biting her. She writhed in the air, trying to push her way through the tiny members of the swarm.

Her wings grew heavy and began to drag her down again. She landed in the undergrowth, watching as thousands of insects began to come towards her. She let out a blast of fire at them.

They buzzed aside. The undergrowth caught the flames, beginning to burn. She whipped her head around, wild eyed with fear. She couldn't get away, she couldn't fight them! There were way too many. Too many coming at her.

She grabbed her staff, trying to figure out a way to get away. They kept marching, they avoided flames, there were just too many to fight. Numbers, they had more. She needed to keep the ones on the ground from weighing her down, the airborne ones from attacking.

She felt hundreds of ants clinging to her fur, biting her, slicing her up with their little jaws. She shook her fur furiously, but still they clung to her.

She drew her staff out hurriedly, throwing a pink card into the air. Her nose tapped it, changing its color, sending a new magic shooting through her.

---

Bubble shook her head, grinning at the challenge before her. Though it wasn't much of a challenge, really. She opened her mouth, sending jets of bubbles at the stinging insects. Hundreds of tiny bubbles floated onto Aura's fur, swallowing the insects and making them drop down from her fur. She turned to the approaching swarm and let loose a barrage of bubbles, capturing many of the insects.

Another blast. More fell. Bubble blasted the bugs for a while, and then began to smirk as their numbers dwindled, and then disappeared.

Bug filled suds dripped from the trees and grass. Lather coated the ground. Thousands of bugs stuck in suds wriggled about in their prisons. Bubble smiled triumphantly, before retreating to her card again.

----------

Yue watched as the sun began to rise over the ocean. He settled himself as comfortably as he could, trying to find a good place to sleep. Below, Syaoran was creeping behind whatever cover he could find, searching for a place to wait out the day.

'I should sleep while I can too.' He thought, settling behind a hill.

---------

Aura gazed about at the masses of trapped insects coating the area. Satisfied, she twitched her tail tip and stowed her staff.

'Who keeps attacking me?' she wondered vaguely. She caught no scents, no sounds that could help. Her skin stung and burned from bites and stings.

She snarled and shook her mane out, licking the teeth in the corners of her mouth. Whoever was doing this was really starting to irk her. Whoever it was, they would they would get a beating from her if she found the. Her claws slid out at the thought, scraping little furrows in the dirt.


	16. As the wind blows

Aura loped through the woods. The four pack members ran about her on the hunt. To the front, they grey leader. To her right, another grey and a brown. Behind her, the young black, nearly full-grown. Their noses caught the scents on the breeze, searching for game. The trees slid away to the sides. The morning sunlight stroked their fur. Aura grinned, her tongue lolling from her mouth happily.

Sure, Kero would be mad at her for ditching her morning classes, but she wanted to hunt right now. Her pack needed the food. She needed to check the territories again. It was a good day to hunt. No sense wasting it.

The lead gray slowed the pace and stared at a chunk of meat hanging from a tree. He snorted at it, knowing there would be a trap there. They turned away from the trap and continued on a real hunt.

Soon the five reached a grassy clearing in the forest. In the clearing, a large herd of deer grazed. The five spread out throughout the area, creeping up on the deer. Aura settled on the close left, settling on her haunches, ready to spring on command. The others crouched too. A moment. A pause. Then they burst out into the clearing.

The deer clustered and ran. The wolves chased behind, separating a weak young buck from the herd. They chased it, watching it slow, tire, and then they caught up. Aura bit a hind leg, jumping away from the kick.

Another wolf sprang forward and snapped at the deer, then another wolf. The deer grew tired, and finally the pack brought it down. They clustered around it. The grey leader and the black pup chose their spots first, feeding immediately. The rest of the pack crept closer and began to eat their fill.

As Aura finished, licking her lips and gazing at the sky for the time, she flicked an ear as she decided whether to go to school or not.

'Absences coming up a bit high. Heard it before. Rather run around. Kero'd be mad though. Getting late. Think I'll walk around, think.'

She lowered her head, growling farewell to the pack before trotting a little ways to the west. Heading for the clearer patches on the edge of the woods.

She approached the edges of the woods, gazing out into the start of a prairie. The wind tickled her ears as she began to descend the slop the plains. She raised her nose and began to walk a bit to the north.

---------

Yue gazed out through the ruins, watching the sun set. After a few moments he rose, gathering a bit of speed and jumping into the air. The air carried him over the landscape below. It slipped past as he glided about in the sky. He gazed out at the opposite bank of the island he was on. He could barely see the outline of the mainland from this height.

-------

Aura slunk on the boarder between the woods and the plains. She smelled a ranch up ahead. Below her a large heard of cattle grazed sluggishly. A pen of sheep lay farther off, and a house to the side of the pen.

She crouched low and circled around the herd, moving to the far side of the house, near another small patch of trees. She hopped onto a sheltered branch and watched the ranch below. A few of the ranchers were milling about, and they appeared to be talking.

Aura strained her ears forward, but couldn't catch what they were saying. The breeze was blowing the words away form her. She scowled and began to think.

----------

Ruins of a city flashed below Yue as he flew. He gazed sadly down at the city. Crumbling buildings, ruined streets, scraps of machines littered the ground below.

----

Syaoran trailed behind Yue sadly. The old buildings towered sorrowfully over him. He sighed at the old city; he remembered when the city was still alive. He had visited around here sometimes, back when he was younger.

It was so close to home… He gazed up at the guardian flying into the distance. It wouldn't hurt to look around a little, would it?

-----

Aura tapped her nose to Wind. The breeze shifted, blowing the conversation into her keen ears. She sat quiet on the branch and listened closely.

"… An' I just can't get them either. It's like they know where my traps are. I've been working with everythin' I got. Poison, snares, footholds, pits, nothings workin'. I swear, those wulfs' musta' been trapped at before or something."

"How many av' they gotten anyway?"

"Well, none yet, but once winter rolls 'round again, I don't want em' near my ranch. I need ta' think up a way to get them away from here. If they're smart enough to avoid traps, they'll get past that fence I'd bet."

"I know, Gonna try an think of something before…"

Aura turned away and dropped back onto the ground. She slunk back around, heading into the thick woods again. So the ranchers were getting jumpy with her pack about then?

'Well, they're not taking anything from the fences, like I told them not to. That's probably kept them safe for now. I might want to get them to move out father into the territory for a while though. No need to rile up the ranchers. A territory battle's the last thing I need to deal with right now.' She thought, looking back towards the city.

She spread her wings and bounced into the air. Her wings caught the breeze and carried her towards school. It wasn't worth getting Kero riled up right now either. She'd go ahead and go back for the last half of school. After all, she had had lunch already.


	17. Broken

It was late night in the bamboo forest. The full moon glittered down on the stalks as they swayed in a light breeze. The leaves rustled and murmured in it.

Yue walked through the waving stalks, thinking sadly of his first two masters.

'Clow… How could you just die like that? Why didn't you ever warn us? Why didn't you ever warn Keroberos or I that you were getting old?

'Sakura … Why did you get sick? If only you had held out a little longer. One week too late. That stupid cure came a whole week too late for you. Why did you both have to die? Clow… Sakura… I miss you two so much now.

'What good is it to be near immortal, when your masters always die.'

He sighed bitterly, as he stepped through light litters of leaves. The sun sank slowly into night.

-------

Syaoran trailed through the deserted city, lost in his own memories and thoughts.

'I should keep closer to Yue. Then again he's not going anywhere anytime soon, is he.'

He opened a half rotted door, walking through the home. His own home, from so long ago.

He walked through all the familiar rooms, the old halls, and the dusty furniture. Windows broken in by greedy thieves, hoping to grab a little prize from sick inhabitants. Not that it did them any good anymore. They had gotten sick and died just like everyone else in the crowded city.

' It's probably their own fault they got sick. They probably picked the plague up from something infected, that they stole.' He thought bitterly.

He ran his finger along an old dusty bookshelf. He coughed a bit in the thick cloud of dust. He waved it away and opened another door, peering around his old room.

Syaoran closed the door to the old room. There was nothing there but bad memories now.

--------

Soft noises of the twighlight engulfed him. Yue listened to the sound of bamboo leaves around him. He rubbed his fingers over a one absently, remembering his first time seeing them.

---

"Clow? Clow! What're these called?"

Little Yue toddled over, holding a couple leaves in his tiny fist, tugging on the bottom of Clow's robe with the other hand. Clow leaned over smiling in amusement at the little moon guardian.

"Oh, those?" Clow smiled and began to explain leaves to Yue.

-------

Yue blinked away tears. He tried to anyway. Two fell anyways. The leaf dropped from his fingers.

He continued to walk on.

'What am I doing here anyway? Why am I here? I left my master. I left her… but why did I come here? Where am I going? Where am I…"

He walked on, staring at the ground, lost in his confusing thoughts as mist swirled at his feet. Blades of grass, thick, wet with mist lightly tickled his bare feet. He looked around at the clearing. Mist swirled over graves stones.

'A graveyard? How...'

He peered about curiously, walking through, reading names as he went. His eyes widened in surprise, and then a slight anger.

'These graves! They're Clow's. And Sakura and her family too! Why are they here? How did they get here? How…' He closed his eyes, shaking his head in confusion.

He walked on.

He peered down at Clow's gravestone. A thin mist swirled around it. A few more tears dropped from his eyes. His hands clenched at his sides.

He gave a quite sob and collapsed onto the damp grass.

'Clow…'

---

The moon was peeking over the horizon in the graveyard. The sun was holding onto its last moments of light for the day. A statue blinked, opening her red and blue eyes again. The feathers on her tail tip swayed slightly in the wind.

'Another of Clow's?' Aven wondered, feeling Yue nearby. She blinked her eyes sleepily, folding her wings closer, sending spider web cracks across the stone shell that her false form was.

Flakes of stone fell off her fur as she raised her head to the moon guardian. His back was to her, and he was crying. She closed her eyes and lowered her head, quietly working to shed her stone coat for a fur one.

----

'She'll leave too, eventually. My masters will die. Leave me behind. Every time. Never see Sakura, or Clow again. I'll never join them, will I?'

Dazed thoughts swirled through Yue's head. The full moon glittered tiredly on the horizon.

Yue glanced at the ground next to him. Shards of sharp stone littered the clearing. The edges shone lightly in the mist. A fog of mental pain floated in Yue's mind as he sat next to Clow's grave.

'I _could_ join them… It would be easy. I could join them…'

The full moon blazed brightly over the bamboo stalks. He moved a hand towards one of the sharp stone flakes, his gaze flickering to his wrist as he reached.

"Don't,"

He heard from behind him.

-----

Aven shook the last stone flakes from her fur. She lifted her head and gazed around the clearing. She could feel the moon guardian's thoughts. He was losing it.

'The moon's at one of its peaks, that's making him crazy enough as it is. But the magic lingering around here, uncontrolled? I gotta get this guy out. Now.' She thought.

"Don't," She commanded, watching him reach for one of her older stone shards. He turned slowly, tears streaking his face, loose bits of hair falling over his face. His eyes were wide… were dazed and confused. She recognized him.

'Yue, Clow's favorite. So even now, after all this time… haha… Clow musta' seen this coming. Sad little Yue visits his master's grave, and then the leftover magic would fry his already sad and pathetic brain. So of course you just made another cat to chase him away. Even now you're still plays favorites.' She thought wryly.

----

Yue watched the other guardian. He didn't recognize her. She was one of Clow's though? He could feel that much. Wait, she was saying something.

"Scram, get out of here." She said, pointing her muzzle to the edge of the clearing. Yue's dazed mind tried to grasp what she said as the moon rose higher.

"Go on, beat it." She repeated. "It's a graveyard, a wizard graveyard. The magic's going to fry your brain if you hang around here too long. It's doing that much already." She said, walking over to him. She could tell, he wasn't getting the message.

Yue blinked, narrowing his eyes slowly.

"Who… are you?" He asked. He swayed where he sat, shaking his head.

"I'm Aven. I make sure people don't come near these graves. You need to leave. Do you understand? You have to leave this clearing."

'This,' Yue thought, 'Clow's grave. She stole Clow? She stole… How dare she? She…' He struggled to put his thoughts together. 'Clow… Oh yeah. I need to see Clow.' He grabbed the nearest stone blade.

"What do you think you're doing!" Aven growled, bounding over. She swiped her paw, sending the sliver to the other side of the clearing before Yue could even from an answer.

"You idiot! Wake up!" she snarled, swiping the paw back over his cheek.

Yue sat dazed for a moment. Blood welled up from the scratches on his cheek. Red and blue eyes glared irritatedly at him.

'What am I doing? Why was I trying to… Who's this?' Yue blinked, and peered about. The fog was lifting a little bit.

"Leave. Clow told me to keep people out of this graveyard. Do you understand?" She repeated patiently.

"Clow told you to keep people out? Why would he… do that?"

"Because there's lingering magic around the bodies. Even now. You have to leave. Besides, if you're running around out here, out of the book, doesn't that mean you have a master to go back to or something?"

"A master?" Yue thought back.

-----

"You don't like me, do you." She said.

"No, I don't… how did you know?"

"It's, you know, your smell; the smell around your area says that usually, you're pretty clam and relaxed and stuff, but when I come in, it's like you get tense and a bit angry. Why don't you like me? Specifically, I mean."

"You act like an animal… and it's not like I can leave..."

"…Why not? I mean, if you really hate it here, you're always free to leave. Anyone actually. Just as long as you don't cause trouble for the rest of the pack, or drag anyone with you kicking and screaming or something. I'm not forcing you to stay or go anywhere."

"I can leave?"

----

"I had one," He replied. "But she didn't want me around. She said I could leave." He told Aven. Aven narrowed her eyes.

"You think she doesn't want you around? Why?"

"She told me to leave."

"Told you to leave? I saw Keroberos travel through here a while back… He had a young chimera with him. She was his master. I also remember she had an odd habit of letting the cards run free. Are you sure she told you to leave, or offered to let you?" Aven asked quietly.

----

"I mean, I'd like it if you could find a way to stay here and be happy, but if you really hate it here, you're always free to leave. Anyone actually. Just as long as you don't cause trouble for the rest of the pack, or drag anyone with you kicking and screaming or something. I'm not forcing you to stay or go anywhere."

----

Yue's eyes widened as he remembered.

"It was an offer… but I still don't like her. She's ruthless, savage. I…" He tried to sort out his opinions on the strange creature.

"Either way, it makes no difference to me," Aven said, turning back to her spot in the clearing, "whether you go back or not. But just leave the grave yard, alright?"

Yue nodded tiredly, getting up.

'I don't like her. But she's still my master. I said so myself. And Clow wanted…'

He gazed up at the moon as he flew quietly back to the city ruins.

-------

Syaoran watched the sky, seeing Yue flying back towards the city. He turned quickly and ducked into a house. Yue flew past overhead, heading back to the ocean. He hadn't noticed Syaoran

'Now where's he going?' Syaoran wondered tiredly.


	18. Quarantine

Quarantine

Syaoran walked through the ruined town. He looked around, walking through the streets as he remembered them. Clear as if he had walked them only yesterday. Paint peeled of the houses; patches of pavement were missing from the streets.

A sign, faded and with paint peeling, read, ' Tomoeda High School'.

He walked around, gazing sadly at the familiar buildings. He had walked until he had reached Sakuras old house.

He walked into the house, holding back a sneeze. The place was dusty, of course. He trailed his fingers along the rail of the main stairway. On the doorknob to her room, still as he remembered it. He thought sadly of their adventures.

He rubbed his fingers over an old, stuffed black bear. A few tears leaked from the corners of his eyes. He hugged the bear close to him.

He coughed suddenly, shivering in the breeze leaking through the old walls. He clutched the bear closer for a moment, and then slid it into his pocket. A tear slid down his face. More followed soon after.

-----

-----

-----

Yue was trailing overhead. He had been going slowly, trying to avoid being seen, but flying over a few straggling groups of people. It had been four days so far, traveling back home. It would be harder to find a ride back.

'I wonder what's going to happen when I get back?' he wondered, thinking up scenarios. 'What am I going to say?'

-----

The sun was rising as Syaoran walked along the streets. He shivered as he watched the ground slide by, past his feet. He was close to the ocean. It looked like Yue was going home. Hopefully, that meant he could too. He coughed again.

'I must be coming down with something. The rest will do me good.' He thought to himself. It was almost summer after all. He gazed at the rising sun as he walked. He would go home, get some rest for a while… ' He thought to himself as he pulled out his sword and a wind spell. He raised the paper to the air, but something caught his eye before he activated it.

"Who's there?" He called to a shape in the shadows. He watched as a great grey cat stepped out into the open. The feathers on her tail waved in a slight breeze, as she spoke.

"I am Aven, the dawn and dusk guardian who guards the graves." She answered stilly.

Syaoran raised an eyebrow. "A guardian? Who made you?"

"Clow Reed,"

"That's impossible, Clow only made two guardians, the same with Eriol." He said. Aven shook her head.

"It's possible, and it's true." She stated. "And, I cannot allow you to leave."

Syaoran raised his sword to defend himself. "Yeah, and why not?"

"Because you are carrying a plague that killed off so many a few years ago," Syaoran reeled back.

"But I got the vaccine for that, that's impossible." He protested.

"It's not. The version you carry is mutated through the magic you carry. If you leave, you will re-start the whole thing. This strain is harder to kill because it came about because of the hosts carrying magic." She explained.

Syaoran didn't know what to say for a few moments, but found his tongue after some thought.

"I haven't been in contact with other sorcerers since I came here. How, then, could I have caught it?" He narrowed his eyes. Who was this creature?

"The bear. The first strain, you've been in contact with since arrival, but not enough to be deadly on its own. The bear you carry with you, that is what's infected. And you are too. That's why I cannot allow you to leave here." She said firmly, tensing for the possible fight."

----------

Yue coasted over the ocean. The water was smooth and blue, no ships had passed through recently it seemed. 'I hope I don't have to fly my way back.' He thought, scanning the horizons.

He ran scenarios through his mind as he flew. Would Aura be happy he was home? Would he just fly to the window? If she was or wasn't there, what should he do. Wait for her? Go in? Look for her?

And what if she was mad at him for leaving? Would he be punished, or would she just growl at him? Would she even care? Did she miss him?

He shook his head, trying to clear these from his mind. He watched the sun creeping over the horizon. As he watched, he could make out a small boat sailing past, south of him. He adjusted his wings, heading for the craft.

((Sorry you had to wait so long for something this short and all, but writers block and a nasty stomach bug have been attacking me))


	19. Coming home

Coming Home

The class murmured around the sleepy chimera as she waited tensely for the bell. School was almost out, only a few more days. But that meant the idiots were getting more idiotic. She looked at the clock impatiently. One more class to go, after this one.

She lowered her head and closed her eyes, wishing she had time to be napping. Like Kero was right now. She scowled jealously.

-----

Yue glided over the city tiredly. 'This looks like the right town.' He thought, trying to make himself sound cheerful. It wasn't working though, of course.

He tilted his course, heading for the orphanage. When he got there, he saw Aura's room empty. That meant it was a school day, and she was actually at school for once. Or, the more likely explanation, was that she was somewhere in the woods.

'I'll try feeling where she is. Better than searching the whole forest.' He thought, closing his eyes and searching for Aura's trail.

'That's odd. It seems she really is at school. I suppose I'd better find a place to wait. The first place she'd go after leaving school would be…?'

He began to fly to the wolfs cave. Hopefully, he could wait there. It was probably the first place she'd go to unwind, after all.

---

Kero woke up in Aura's pocket. 'What was that?' He wondered tiredly. He thought he had felt something. A probe. He began to sense for probing magics. He almost squeaked in surprise when he felt Yue.

'He feels tired. Real tired. But he's home? Yue's usually so stubborn though.' Kero jumped as the bell rang. 'Aura probably didn't notice though. Better give her a heads up.' He thought, tapping his masters' leg as she walked.

---

Aura felt Kero tap her leg as she walked through the halls. She ducked to the side, slipping out a door onto the lawn outside. She ducked out of sight and pulled out the pocket-sized guardian.

"Aura! Guess what! Yue's back! I just felt him looking for you!" Kero piped excitedly. "What hour is this?"

"About to go to last hour. You… _want_ me to ditch?" She questioned. Kero thought for a moment.

"Well… I think he's resting _now_. Go to class for now, but let's hurry and find him afterwards." Kero ordered, as Aura slipped him into her bag, walking back inside, and hurrying to her last hour.

------------

Yue peered into the entrance of the cave. Would the pack be out hunting right now? He hoped so...

No luck. Four wolves peered curiously at him, bristling slightly. The gray leader stood up and approached cautiously.

The wolves growled around Yue. He held out a hand for them to sniff. Would they remember him? He certainly hoped so.

--

"Who's this?" the gray leader growled curiously. His pack rose and cautiously crept towards Yue.

"I think it's one of Aura's pack. He smells like all of those. A bit." The black said, sniffing the hand that was extended towards him.

"I think he's scared." One chuckled to his packmates.

---

The wolves seemed relaxed enough. 'They must remember me.' Yue thought, sitting in the back of the cave. The wolves settled back down, and seemed to be talking amongst themselves.

----------

Aura trotted out of class, first among the herd of children around her. She just couldn't get to the woods fast enough. But once she was in, she fell to all fours, backpack swinging from her jaws.

"Let's go." She said, hiding the bag in the fork of a tree. Kero dropped down onto her head, concentrating.

"He's in the woods." He said, "Thatta way." Aura followed a pointing paw, galloping across the sandy patches in the woods. Small animals skirted away from her path as Kero adjusted her course.

Soon enough, Aura found herself sniffing the entrance to the cave. The pack growled to her in greeting. She licked the gray leaders muzzle, before padding slowly to the back. Yue sat there, staring at her. She sniffed and perked her ears forward. "Yue?"

"Um… I'm back. I came back- I, uh." He still hadn't figured out what to say.

Aura wagged her tail, grinning and tapping her nose lightly against his. "Yeah, I noticed that…" She pondered about asking why he was back, but decided not to. "Glad you are. Figured out the first place I'd come after school, I see." She stepped back a little, giving Kero room to pounce on Yue, giving Yue as much of a bear hug as he could in his false form. Yue looked down at Kero a moment, and awkwardly patted his brothers' head.

Yue got up slowly, eyeing the wolves cautiously. Aura trotted out of the cave, tail wagging slightly. She perked her ears and froze, turning to Yue. "Just a sec, I gotta talk to the pack about something real quick. You can go on home, I'll be back in a few." She said, walking back to the cave and growling to the pack.

--

The gray pack looked up at Aura as she walked back. "I remembered, the ranchers are getting jumpy about how close you are to their ranch. I found some good hunting grounds not ten miles from here, the games richer and it's on a territory that doesn't allow other humans on it. There's water and shelter too. You may want to move up there. It's a little to the south and west of here." She said, looking past the leader, shaking her head in the direction she had said.

----------

Yue looked up as Aura nosed the window open. She slunk down to the floor, stowing her wings and shaking her fur a bit. "So," He asked. "What did you have to talk to them about?" Yue asked.

Aura pawed under the bed, fishing out a stash of jerky. "There's a ranch bordering the territory. The ranchers are getting jumpy with them hunting near it. Though I told them to leave everything behind the fence alone, and so far they are. Still, I went out and found a nice patch for the pack to stay while the ranch calms down a bit." She opened the bag of meat, and tossed a large chunk to Kero, taking a big piece for herself too. Kero cheered delightedly as he caught the treat, settling onto the top of the bookshelf. Yue sat silently for a while.

---

"You're not going to ask why I came back?" Yue asked, getting tired of waiting for the questioning.

"Hm? Well, if you want me to, I suppose you can tell. If you didn't want to talk about it though, I won't press." She answered, gnawing at her meat. Yue was rather relived to hear this, though he could see Kero was dying of curiosity.

----------

Yue slept in his corner peacefully. The half moon glittered tiredly in the sky outside. Kero stirred again. He had yet to sleep yet, curiosity combined with earlier napping being the cause. Aura stirred again, rolling over and curling up.

"Insomnia again?" He asked. Aura rolled onto her belly and nodded, pawing around for something to gnaw on, coming up with a bone of some sorts.

"Yup. Late spring, late fall. You?"

"Can't stop wondering what made Yue change his mind. Any ideas?"

"Nah. Honestly, stuff like 'why' doesn't really bother me. All I usually worry about is the what, not necessarily the why. Yue's back, it's enough for me."

"You don't wonder at all?"

"Not really. That's one thing that separates humans from most other creatures, that they live around. The, 'why did' in life are more important to them. It's one thing that didn't carry over very strongly to me, you see."

Kero shifted again in the pile of plush toys. "You don't say." He said, rolling over again, trying to sleep.


	20. a walk in the park

A walk in the park

Kero and Aura trotted down the dirt road, past the fringes of the city in the early morning light. A thin mist clung to the land, and shielded Yue as he flew above. The weather was clear today, and it was a weekend, so Kero had proposed they go to Freezes' Lake to lounge around. With nothing better to do, both Aura and Yue had decided to tag along. Like a family picnic or something.

The grass-lined trails began to breaking into wooded patches of land, and fewer fences lined the road. When the last house was out of sight, Aura flicked her tail, signaling Yue it was safe enough to come down.

The trio turned into the dense growth of grass, and plowing through it found themselves in the woods. Kero hummed cheerily to himself as they walked, Aura flicked her tail along to the beat. Yue was content to just walk alongside them quietly. It was peaceful.

But, of course, it couldn't last. Kero stopped humming, as he and Yue jumped, and began to look around cautiously. High-pitched whines came to Auras ears. The group stood back to back, looking around for threats. Kero's ear flicked and he turned to see several little shapes darting behind a patch of trees, seemingly trying to be stealthy.

"Aura, Yue," He called; flicking his ear towards the patch of trees the shapes were hiding behind. They turned and watched the patch warily.

From behind the tree came hundreds of whistling, chirping sounds, and swarms of small darting shapes came at them.

'Birds?' Aura wondered, trying unsuccessfully to track the cloud. She growled as she felt one scrape past her, leaving a long cut on her leg. Kero growled and swiped out at them with a paw, before letting a burst of flame out.

Yue shot crystal after crystal at them, trying to grab one and find out what the shapes were. He snagged one and looked at it.

"They're leaves!" Aura heard him shout, as she snorted flames at whatever came too close. She shook a small swarm off of her face, growling savagely. 'Leaves, leaves! What can I use against leaves!' She reared up, clawing at a clump of the little green pests as they left several cuts and nicks all over her. 'No idea where Fire went! Who else can I use?' She thought franticly. She snarled as another of the sharp edges left a slashed her flank.

"Where are they coming from!" Kero roared, wincing at each cut he got. "I thought this patch was pine trees!"

Aura perked her ears and grabbed her staff in her jaws, slashing at a few of the leaves with the long blades. 'Trees, trees. Wood!' She grabbed the card in her teeth, tossing it up and tapping her nose to the name.

With a flash the cards color changed, and a swirl of mist crept through Aura's staff, and swirled around her.

---

Wood hissed softly, clamping her jaws down on the staff, now colored with an assortment of brown streaks. Wood planted one of her paws down, shooting up a thin sapling that twisted and lashed out at the leaves. The tree was followed by another, and another, all whipping out their branches and catching the little green pests.

Kero and Yue looked up as the whirlwind slowed, and the remaining leaves were caught in the flailing branches. Saplings dotted the forest, gripping branchfulls of foliage. Wood panted a little, retreating tiredly back into her card.

---

Aura flicked her tail as she looked around at the new trees that lined the forest. She nosed around the roots, familiarizing herself with the change. "You guys okay?" She called, brushing her cheeks against the bark.

"Yeah, You?" Kero called. Aura dipped her head yes and turned back to the path. Licking some of the shallow cuts on her forelegs.

------

Kero flopped into the cool sand at the edge of the lake, sighing contentedly. Yue sat next to him, as Aura skirted around on the ice, playing hockey with a smooth pebble.

Kero watched for a moment, before springing up to play. A small smile snuck onto Yue's face as he watched them try to play keep away on the slick pond, usually tripping and slipping at any direction change.

-------

The sun was setting as the group began to head home. Eriol watched them from his circle. Aura nipped at Kerberos's ear playfully. And he swatted her with his paw in jest. Yue wasn't participating in their game, but looked perfectly fine with just walking. Eriol smiled as he watched the scene.

"Heeeeeey, why don't we ever get to go anywhere?" Ruby whined, watching the tired group as they walked home. Eriol smiled. "Well, where would we go? We've already been so many places…"

-------

Aura flopped over onto her bed, letting out a happy purr. Kero stretched and curled up in his nest.

"I think tomorrow I'll go visit the pack. They should be to the park lands by now." She said, wriggling under her blanket. "Anyone want to come?"


	21. Gone

Gone

The sun was making its way towards the top of the sky as Aura slunk through the undergrowth. She sniffed the air, searching for her prey. There seemed to be a sick rabbit around here somewhere. She just had to figure out where the darn thing went. Kero was hunting a ways away from her, trying for a fish in the river.

She paused, perking her ears and gazing to her left. The trees thinned, opening onto a patch of grassland. A little ways off was the ranch. The two ranchers had guns and traps, and were loading them into their truck. She left her trail, slinking closer to listen in.

"…and I noticed tracks. I followed them a ways, and they go right into the reserve. I looked around and they're not too far in."

"Think they're still there?"

"Why wouldn't they be? They're just a bunch of mangy wolves. If they left, that means they're coming back."

She smothered a growl. 'Those poachers! They're after my pack again. That's a wildlife refuge! They are not allowed to go there!' She glared angrily at them, baring her teeth. She turned and bounded to the river. She had to go tell the pack to scat, but Kero'd want to know where she went.

Kero looked up at her with a fish in his mouth. "I got one!" He mumbled around his prey. He noticed her agitated look and shifted the fish to his paws. "What's wrong?" He asked.

"I gotta go tell the pack to run. Ranchers turned poacher, going up after them." She said, pulling up her wings. Kero mumbled a moment.

"Think I'll come with you." He said. 'Make sure she doesn't do something stupid.' He thought to himself. She might attack and get spotted, not paying attention in a fight or chase where her wolves were concerned. Her tail tip was twitching jumpily, and she kept looking around anxiously, shifting on her paws.

The two took off, flying hurriedly towards the mountain reserve.

-----

Eriol walked into his study, feeling a little bored. "TV's still over rated." He joked to himself, casting the spell to let him watch Aura. He saw her flying over a stretch of woods with Kero in tow. He thought for a moment, and began to conjure another spell.

-----

Aura flapped quickly, soaring to her pack. The truck was far below, and getting far behind. 'At this rate, I should get there in plenty of time.' She noted to herself, growling. She caught a breeze, and coasted on the air current. She looked down at the small river below and perked her ears. 'Oh no' She thought hearing the high whining of trouble.

The water rose slowly out of the river. She backpedaled in the air, yowling as the water reared up to eye level. She zipped back towards Kero.

As he got ready to fight beside her, she snarled and clenched her teeth around her key, turning it to her staff-blades. 'I don't have time for this!' She tossed a pink card into the air. Freeze gave a battle cry as he dived towards the mass of water. The water twisted out of the way though, splattering little, stinging water bullets at Aura and Kero.

The chimera snarled and let out a jet of fire. The water twisted away and lunged at the pair. Kero flapped madly, dodging the water, and roared when he saw it had smashed into Aura. The two fought against the water angrily. Aura backed back from an attack, whipping her head around as she felt feathers brush against her.

Yue hovered next to her, watching the river blocking her path. He launched a blast of crystals at the torrent, freezing patches in the river. But the current quickly washed the ice away, smashing it. The water turned and rushed at Yue. Aura yelped as it shot past her, smashing Yue onto the ground below. She growled, seeing chunks of ice float through the current.

She thought another moment. 'Ice… Freeze is too big, it dodges him, I need smaller ice bits, that can't be dodged easily. Ice flakes. Snowflakes. Snow!' She pulled out the pink card, tapping her nose to its base.

--

Snow watched Auras staff hange color, a blue ice core, fading in color at the edges to white. Her eyes glowed icy blue for a moment, sending a small blizzard of freezing crystals into the river as it rushed towards Kero. The river reared back, as if wounded, turning to face Snow instead. Snow glowed again, sending a blizzard around the waters. It bubbled, slowly falling onto the forest floor as many, many snowflakes, and soon disappeared altogether.

---

Aura growled as Snow returned to her card. She watched Kero, as he dived to a small path in the woods below. She followed behind, spotting Yue laying down there, out cold. She landed, and tapped her nose to his neck. Then, relived to find a pulse, turned anxiously to the path she had been on. Kero looked over.

"I'll take care of Yue, go help your pack." He said. She turned and tore down the path. It wasn't even a mile now.

----

Eriol watched his water spell crumble into snow. "Very good. Snow." He said. It looked like his work would be done soon, at this rate. He shut down his portal, oblivious to the trouble he had caused.

----

Aura darted around trees. Her paws only skimmed the ground. The ranchers would have arrived by now, and they might have tracked her pack down. All that mattered now was getting to her friends in time. All that mattered was making sure they were safe. She had to. She dashed over the border into the reserve.

A shot rang out through the woods. A chill ran through her. 'No! Oh no!' She raced as fast as she could as another shot rang out. She caught the trail, following it through the territory as she heard another shot, now followed by a yelp. She skidded to a halt as she came to a fern covered ledge.

The black wolf, just past being a cub, backed away, as a fourth shot rang out. The wolf screamed, falling to the ground.

Aura stood stunned on the ledge, as the ranchers-turned poachers talked among themselves.

She lowered her head; angry tears trickling down her muzzle. She bared her teeth in a quiet growl.

"There. they won't be hanging around now. Good riddance."

"Let's get out of here before someone catches us."

Two last tears fell, to be replaced with drops of blood, trickling from two new cuts on her gums, caused by two long teeth pushing out in the back of her mouth. Her growl grew angrier.

"Yeah, don't need to be fined or something."

Her tail lashed, the growing tuft at the end whistling through the air. Her blunt claws scraped furrows in the earth as her growl grew into a snarl.

"You hear something?"

"Yeah, let's get out of… Son of a-!"

Aura snarled and leapt down from her hiding place, roaring the poachers. Her white eyes had a dangerous gleam to them now, as she stalked towards them.

She rushed forward, leaping into the air with a scream of fury. The poachers screamed, aiming at the enraged beast.

----------

Yue blinked his eyes open, finding Kero next to him, in his false form.

"Hey, you okay?" The plush toy-like guardian asked. Yue nodded and sat up, looking around him.

"Where's our master?" He asked, rubbing his head.

Kero looked out to the woods. "When we were attacked, we were trying to get to the pack, because the ranchers are following them. They shouldn't be, but they are. So Aura was going to tell the pack to get farther away." Kero explained. "I told her I'd stay here with you, and she should go on ahead. You wanna go find her now?" He asked.

Yue stood up and spread his wings. It was nearly nighttime now. He looked down at Kero, who was returning to his true form. The two took off.

"She went ahead to take care of the wolves?" Yue asked icily. Kero nodded nervously. You could never tell what Yue was thinking… Well, Sakura had usually been able to guess somehow, but…

Kero shook the thought from his head. Right now, he had to make sure his master was all right. That she hadn't done anything stupid trying to protect the wolves.

Yue looked over to him, pointing down at a white smudge below.

-----------

Dirt shifted. Paws worked slowly, moving moist soil back in place. The second hole was covered.

Dirt coated her paws, hiding the blood on the chimera's paws as she scooped the last pawfull of dirt. Her ear twitched to the sound of wings to her side. She looked up at her two guardians.

"Aura?" Kero asked cautiously, edging forward. He sniffed the air. There were trickles of blood running down her foreleg. "Did you find them in time, or…"

The chimera shook her head sadly, and licked her teeth nervously. "No, they were shot. Are you two okay?" she said, looking towards a patch if pine needles to the side. Kero nodded, glancing towards the forest too.

Aura looked up at the stars rising in the sky. Kero tried again. "You wanna get home? It's almost dark out…" But Aura shook her head.

"No, you two go on ahead, I'll be back sometime tomorrow morning." She turned back to the hole she had covered, sitting down. Kero hesitated, then turned and nodded up into the air. He and Yue took off, leaving Aura to sit near the mound of earth.

She closed her eyes, trying to slow her breathing. 'He didn't notice, no one else will either.' She thought with relief.


	22. Vacation'

21- 'Vacation'

Aura walked sluggishly out the doors of the school. A slow moving point among the teenagers rushing out with glee. The last day of school.

'And nowhere to go after.' She thought, boarding the bus. With her pack gone for good, she couldn't return to the woods she had run through them with. There were too many memories. Today, the day she had the most time; she would just be going home.

She turned her head up, watching the sun as it flitted between the passing trees.

--

Kero watched from the backpack as Aura stared up at the sun.

"…That can't be good for your eyes." He commented, tapping her arm, and at the same time, startling the person next his master on the bus. The random person scooted off to find another seat, and Aura turned tiredly. It seemed to Kero she was taking her packs death hard.

The bus rolled to a stop, and she got off. She trudged into the orphanage, and up the stairs. Up the hall. Into her room. She greeted Yue, and flopped onto her bed.

After she had fallen asleep, Yue turned to Kero.

"She isn't usually like this. Was she really that close to those wolves?" He asked. Kero nodded.

"Yeah, she spent most of her free time with them. Running, hunting, playing. She hardly ever went a day without dropping by their cave." He said. "She was as close to the wolves as she is to you or me or the cards."

He gazed out the window worriedly.

------

The sun was low in the sky as Aura trudged through the woods, looking halfheartedly for food. The leaves crunched underfoot. Small animals scurried away wearily. The chimera gazed up at the low sun, burning tiredly at the horizon. A mournful growl escaped her throat. Her paws twitched as she gazed out to the plains. She gazed into the distance.

A crouch. A leap. She began to bound from the woods onto the plains. She got some feet from the trees, before slowing and stopping. She turned back to the woods with her tail trailing through the grass.

---------

Kero listened tiredly to Aura as she rolled over yet again.

"Can you just go to sleep?" He whined at her. His master gave whining grunt and rolled to the floor. The sky was going gray; the sun would soon be up. Aura's tail lashed and she shook herself with a snort. She paced back to her bed and hopped up before flopping over listlessly. Kero rolled his eyes and curled up tighter.

-----

The chimera growled and got up again a few minutes later. She paced across the room a few moments, then to the window. The sun was low in the sky again. She snorted and shook her fur again. Yue glanced up as she turned restlessly back to her bed.

It was mid afternoon when Aura went back into the woods. She sniffed half-heartedly for game. A bird chirped overhead and she looked up to the sun. It shimmered and shone, casting everything in a dull heat. Flies droned on and on near her ears. Her lips curled back from her teeth with a quiet growl. The grass murmured nearby in the hot breeze. As if in a daze, she looked back over the plains. Her claws scraped the dirt as she plodded heavily to the edge of the forest. She grunted and took off across the grassland.

-----

Yue gazed out the window.

"But she's usually back by now!" Kero repeated for the -_nth_ time. Yue ignored his brother, watching the rising moon like nothing else mattered.

"What if she's hurt or something? She might have gotten stuck somewhere, or caught by something. And she hasn't brought back anything to eat either!"

One of Yue's eyebrows twitched in annoyance. "If you're hungry you can always go hunt for yourself." He said evenly.

Kero shot a glare at his brother. "Aren't you worried at all? She's our master, and she should be back by now!" He growled.

Yue shot a slight glare at his younger brother. 'I am; however, our master is capable of taking care of herself. I don't sense anyone using magic near here. I'm sure she's fine."

"… You haven't seen her in many fights. She's lost quite a few of them." His voice dropped. "Against most of the cards it was luck. Or backup. And she's been so out of it lately…" Kero lifted the window. "I'm going to go look for her."

"…" Yue said nothing in reply.

---------

Aura trotted tiredly though the grasses. It had been a long time since she had taken a run that long with no breaks. She licked her dry lips. She should probably find some water…

The plains were beginning to end, giving way to sparse treed lands. The moon glittered high in the sky now. She sniffed around patches of trees, moving towards the greener and thicker growth.

She perked her ears as growls came form behind her. She turned slowly, trying not to appear a threat.

Three coyotes stared at her. She lowered her ears and wagged her tail.

"Hey. I'm sorry, am I in your territory?" She asked innocently. The coyotes stared for a few moments.

"Yup. What the 'ell are ya'?" The middle one asked.

"Aura the Chimera. I didn't mean to intrude… but I am looking for something at the moment. Do you think you could help me find it?" She asked.

The coyotes glanced at each other. "Maybe. What'cha lookin' for?"

"A pack of wolves in need of a territory. I know a territory a ways away that would be good for them, but I need a pack to show it to, ya' know?"

"Why'd ya' want wolves in yer turf?" The middle one seemed to be leader. She began to address him directly now.

"I'm fond of 'em. But hey, wolves on my turf aint wolves on yours, right?"

"M'kay. Good point. Wha' kinda' wolves you lookin' for?"

"Oh, you know. Just any type. A pack of four to eight, preferably in a bit of a rut so I could convince them to come. Is there anyone like that around here?"

"Yup. Cause a racket. On the other side o' the territory though. Feel free ta' take 'em 'way from here. Ya' can even rest up 'efore ya' go if ya' want."

Aura dipped her head. "Thank you. I shall. Where do you shelter?"


	23. Come

Come

A large, shabby barn looms over the chimera. Rain patters around her as she looks up at it.

--

"Yeah, there's wolfs near 'ere. Down 'round that barn."

While the talking coyote ripped off a piece of meat, another piped up.

"Make a real fuss down 'ere. Barks an' yaps and yelps. I think ter fight 'em an' stuff."

--

'Putting wolves in a dog fight.' Aura shakes her head angrily and snarls. 'Disgusting.' She shakes rain from her pelt and runs through what she will say again.

---

The sun beat down on the patch of woods as Aura sniffed around the area. The barn was old and shabby. Surprising it stood up still. She crept quietly through a gap in the side of it. She sniffed the air. It was way too hot in there. She could see the wolves. Five were in cages, cramped up and separated form each other. She peered around, seeing no water, no food for them. They panted and lay tiredly on the dirty floors. She crept back out again.

---

Aura picks up a large, stolen joint of meat from the sparse grass and slinks in through the main door.

The wolves stare at her as she walks in, her tail respectively low. She turns to look at the pack, determining the black male to be the leader by his stance. She walks to his cage and slides the meat in. He growls and begins to tear at it. After a moment, he looks around at the other pack members.

"Would you like me to give them some then?" Aura asks. The wolf says yes and she divides the remaining half of the food. The leader is staring at her now.

"Who are you? What are you?" He growls with a polite caution.

"My name is Aura," She says, "I am a chimera. What are your names?"

The wolves are silent and wary for a while. "Why do you care?" He asks suspiciously. Aura wags her tail. "Wolves are my adopted kin. I can help you, you know. I can get you out of here and out there." She shakes her head to the entrance.

---

"Rain?" Aura had called to the card. It rose from its card and eyed her. "Yes?"

"Rain, can you cause a light downpour later this evening over that'a'way?" Aura asked, nodding to the wolves' area. Rain shrugged. "Sure, I guess. Why?"

---

"What is out there more than here?" He asks. "Why should we leave?"

Aura smiles. "Out there is food. Food like what you ate, but fresher. Have you never smelled how much food is eaten by the one who fights you?" She smiles more. "Out there is water. Water that falls from the sky in great amounts. Water falls right now."

"You lie. Water comes from the hose over there." He says, looking to an old green hose. Aura shakes her head. They must have never left this barn but to fight dogs. Tragic. "Not true. It comes from there, but before that, it comes from the sky. I shall prove it." She walks to the door and shoulders the heavy gate open. The drizzle is there for the pack to see. They stare in amazement. She walk out and lets the water soak her pelt, before she walks back to the cages. She shakes, sending spray to the wolves. The thirsty pack can now lick the water, and they are interested now.

"Can- can you really get us out there?" He asks in awe. Aura nods and grabs the keys in her teeth from where they dangle on the wall.

"That I can."

"And what is outside than water"

"The outside, well now…"

------


	24. Run

Run

Kero sailed though the air, peering below at the grasslands he flew over. Yue glided next to him, silent as an owl. It had been three days now. Aura still hadn't come home and even Yue was starting to show worry over where she went.

Yue was tracing her signature from low in the sky. He wondered just where she was going. If she knew where she was going. Her trail meandered about, twisting and sliding from side to side. By now she could be anywhere between the plains and the ocean! 'She could have at least told us she was leaving.' He thought moodily.

Kero glided lower. Spotting another clump of trees. He reasoned that being as she was, if she would be found anywhere it would be curled up a tree somewhere.

Yue sighed to himself. 'Keeping a master shouldn't be this hard.' He thought as he flew lower.

Kero rumbled, signaling he had found something. Yue looked down over the green trees and saw a deer kill. It didn't smell strongly yet, but the flies had began to gather. Kero landed and began to sniff around. Yue stood and watched a moment. Waiting for news was a little awkward, he couldn't do anything to help search. He watched for anything coming, but the leaves were still, the wind was still, and the only noises were the flies buzzing around the deer.

"Found somethin'!" Kero called, jolting his brother back into reality. "I found tracks. I think that some of them are wolf, and these ones," He pointed to a few light prints in the moist dirt, "I think are Aura's." to Yue they looked rather alike, but Kero had been running through woods after food and his master for almost two years now, so he probably knew Aura's tracks by now. Hopefully.

---

Aura encouraged the small pack of five through the woods. It turned out that only the black alpha male and the white she-wolf were related. The others had been brought in to fight and early enough to bond with the siblings. In all, they were a strange pack, but they should still be able to survive. Longer than at the dog fights anyway.

"Come on, you must pace yourself for the trip. Endurance will be your greatest ally in a hunt." Aura called back.

"We caught that last one just fine," The black called back.

"Yeah, and it was so injured already it's a wonder we got to it first. Trust me, its not usually anything near that easy."

The wolf looked like he didn't quite believe her, but he slowed their paces a little anyway. He was starting to tire.

The white she startled and looked up at an overhead shadow. Aura whipped her gaze up, and the rest of the pack gazed too. And they started to growl. Keroberos landed in front of his master. Aura flicked her tail and growled to the wolves they didn't have to growl, but she appreciated their redyness to fight if need be.

"Where the heck have you been?" Kero said, shrinking to his little form. He hovered in the air accusingly in front of her nose. Yue landed too, giving the pack a respectful distance. "I've been worried sick! What were you thinking, just taking off like that without a word?"

Aura tilted her head apologetically. "I had to find another pack." She offered as excuse and explanation. Kero looked flustered, about to argue, and then flopped over in the air with a groan.

"Ugh. Whatever. Let's just get home then." Kero rubbed his head tiredly. Aura wagged her tail and nodded. Then she grinned and yipped excitedly to her new pack mates.


	25. Back to earth

Back to earth

Aura trotted back to her home. It was late night, the moon hung fat in the sky. She had her staff clamped in her jaws, and a pink card in her mouth. She had changed Big that night. After just a few days off the job, she was getting weaker. Or so it seemed to her. She arrived at the tall building tiredly and hopped up the tree and up to her room. Lock let her in gladly. She walked to her book and slipped Big in, on top of Time.

Kero lifted his head. She turned to him and twitched her tailtip.

They said nothing. Kero couldn't persuade her to stop changing a card every night, and she couldn't persuade him she had to. And besides, no need to argue and wake Yue.

Aura curled up and dozed restlessly that night. Every night since she had gotten back, she had been dreaming of staving cards, losing their magic and dying. So many were still asleep, it made her fur prickle even dreaming it.

----

Kero woke up blearily with the sun in his eyes. Summer break was nice. He didn't have to get up early in the morning to haul his master out of bed before she 'accidentally' missed the bus. She was still fast asleep, so obviously if he wanted breakfast he would have to get it himself. Ah well.

He stretched out and yawned. Yue looked over at him. Kero waved cheerily and hopped up to the windowsill. Lock, for once, let the lion out. Kero set off to the river warren to hunt.

--

Aura stirred awake rather reluctantly. Sunlight glittered from the window over the room. She got up and slunk to the window. Her belly growled in agreement to a hunt, so she took to the skies over the pines.

Soon she came upon the warren full of grass and wind. Of course. All the rabbits were asleep by this time of day. She growled and circled.

A gale of wind rushed past her, carrying the same smell. She was knocked through the air, and floundered in the sky. Her tired wings beat the air. She growled and whipped out her staff. It was a small stream of steam. Her skin steamed where droplets landed on it. It lunged at her. She dove and flapped. Her wings fumbled and spilled the air.

She crashed through the prickly branches and thudded on the forest floor. Getting to her feet and shaking her head she clamped onto her blades. Her wings trailed on the ground. Flying was too hard to manage on a tired mind, but she needed to get it from the air to catch all the steam. She dragged a pink card from her back and tapped her nose to it.

Float carried her up into the air. She snarled and conjured Freeze. The giant fish dived at the steam and froze it.

Vapors escaped, only to be caught on dives afterwards. The monster shriveled and disappeared. Freeze greeted her quickly, before sliding back to his lake. She watched after him. Maybe she could fish for breakfast today. She hated fish, but still…

She turned to ask for some of the frozen prey from the lake.


	26. Grit

Grit

It was a warm day over the woods. The sun shone down bright and clear. The smell of dry earth wafted up with the smell of leaves and rivers. Aura flew over the forest lazily. Warm currents supported her in the air as she glided about. She wasn't hunting, now, just gliding along, debating whether she should go by Freeze's lake later or not.

She glanced below. In the clearing the earth was shaking, and rising. She caught the tang of the mystery magic and groaned. The earth rose up and shot into spikes, rising towards her. She circled higher and clamped her teeth onto her key. It became her blades and she thought.

She tapped her nose to a pink card. In a flash of magic, its pink frame was replaced by her blue and gold. Her staff shimmered into grains of brown and tan. Sand glared her gaze on the rising spikes. They stopped in air, falling in a shower of sand back to the ground. Rocks ground themselves together. Dirt mixed with grains, forming the sandy showers now littering the forest floor. The pillar sunk back into the ground and sand smiled, satisfied.

Aura tucked away her staff, sinking sleepily to the ground before she crashed. She sided on the ice of the lake. And flopped to her side in the sand on the bank. She would stay by Freezes Lake. And have a nap in the warm sands lining the shore.

-------

Yeah, since I plan to try and wrap this up before new years, These last bits will be pretty short till the last fights...

Why do I choose the end of the year to make these goals? -x-


	27. Bear your teeth

Bear your teeth

It was late afternoon. Aura was trotting along, trying to catch up to the pack. They were out hunting right now. Dry leaves crunched under her paws. Her ears swiveled about to catch sounds. Her nose caught the musty scent of wild game, the scent of dry vegetation and growing things. Bugs zipped and buzzed about. Heat rolled off the furry chimera. Any one with any sense would have spent the day holed up but for eating and to avoid being eaten. She had been walking along all day.

The walk finally paid off. She caught scent and sight of the pack trotting ahead. She growled hello. They turned and wagged their tails.

But then the strong smell of the beasts was mixed with the familiar tang. There was a rumble from the side. The chimera crouched and whipped around. The wolves growled and stared at the huge bear that lumbered out of nowhere.

There were snarls. In a moment the bear attacked. It snapped and bit down on a brown scruff. Aura leaped forward with a fierce cry. The bear swung a claw at her, gouging her foreleg. She snarled at the bear. The tang returned. The magician had led the bear on them.

She remembered her last pack, lying slain on the ground from his attack at spring. The smell of blood was the same. The yowls were just like then. Her ears lowered and she growled. She had to fight first! She wouldn't lose a second pack so soon!

A pink card shifted color. Her blades glowed pink.

'I'd prefer to fight in my own form, thank you.' She was told. The pink ran down her blades, gathering on the ground. In a swirl of magic, Power stood in front of the bear. It roared and swiped. The tiny card grabbed one claw, and stopped the attack. The bear didn't have time for confusion. Power yanked its paw, bringing it into punching range. The bear had a crushed snout a moment later. Before it could roar, there was a snap! Its head flopped down. It was dead with a broken neck. Power smirked.

"You really are pathetic. Can't even handle a bear. That thing isn't even a challenge." Power bragged, nudging the beast with her foot. Aura swallowed a growl and nodded her thanks to the card. Power turned and walked away into the trunks of the wood.

Aura sniffed the cooling bear. Her stomach growled.

"This," She told her pack, lowering her head to the meat, "Is something you can eat. But I wouldn't recommend trying to hunt them."

The pack drew closer and began to gnaw the tough meat. "Ugh," One said through a bundle of furry flesh, "Why would we want to? This thing is awful. If I wasn't so hungry…"


	28. Vine fight

Vine fight

Aura was roaming the woods as usual. The sun was not very warm that day. She limped a little, wound from yesterdays run in with the bear not quiet healed.

A cool breeze drifted in from Freezes Lake. She could see the lake from where she was. The lake was just downhill of her. Kero was frolicking with Dash and Jump and Change on the ice. Freeze would pop up nice in a while, scattering the players about the lake. Aura smiled. Maybe she would job them after some food.

Except she caught the tang of magicians magic again. Her teeth clenched. This was getting old. Real old. She watched as vines snaked together to form a snake-like head. Leaves sprang up around it, making sharp, whistling noises as they twirled on the monster. It opened its mouth in a silent hiss. Aura backed up. Vines emerged and wrapped themselves into talon shapes.

She tested her paw. Still kind of sore. And these things never seemed to go away till she used a new card on them anyway. She thought through who she had left and called up a pink card.

Fight emerged. She looked at the vines and sized them up. They began to form into a semi-human shape. The two went at it.

There were blows exchanged, but Fight won. Of course. The blue card looked towards the city and began to wander off that way. No doubt for someone to fight with.

Aura looked back to the limp vines littering the wood. She wondered fleetingly who the magician was and what he was after, but not for very long. After all, what good could wondering and worrying do?


	29. Sweet dreams

Sweet dreams

Aura paced her room. Dust layered her desk and shelves. It gleamed in the light shed by the moon. She tried to distract herself from her insomnia by reflecting upon the day.

Yue had taken a flight over the forest with them. Kero had found a small bitter cake for dinner with their poor rations for breakfast. He had persuaded Aura to change sweet to make the cake taste like he said cakes should. She had done just that.

Kero had gotten Yue to wrestle with him a little. Aura had been out hunting then and come back to find them playing like a couple of kittens. Kero had Yue's braid in his mouth and Yue had hold of Kerberos's ear. That had been pretty cute. Of course they had stopped when they realized she was back. Shame.

She sighed and looked back up at the stars in the sky. Her paws went up on the desk and her nose up against the glass.

'…' Her thoughts drifted to past events. Recent and distant. Her sky had so many stars. She gazed out to the cluster where she imagined her pack.

That was one of the worst things about her long nights. When she did get to sleep her dreams were always restless nightmares. Here eyes drooped tiredly and she ambled over to her bed and crawled in. If only she could get some sleep. But fall was coming now. School always had to start just in time for her insomnia.

Then again, she could fall asleep and have good dreams too. She had a card for that. She slipped over to the desk and dug through the deck. She pulled out Dream.

Soon a butterfly settled next to her, and she was asleep, dreaming of chases and hunts and old friends and places.


	30. Unwinding

Unwinding

Kero and Yue had the sense to go away early that day. After nagging her about it, Aura was finally cleaning her room. After Kero started complaining the place was attracting fleas, and though they may leave her alone they attacked him, and that he was tempted to burn the bugs out if she didn't get rid of them, she had given in and decided to clean.

She panted ass she dragged a box out room next to the bookshelf. She was tired not only from cleaning, but deciding it would go quicker to have Move help her. The playful card was proving more work than help though.

Aura shot Move a look, and he put one of the plush toys down where he had taken it from. She glanced at the bookshelf.

"Can you start putting the books in that shelf onto my bed for now?" She asked, sorting through the box she had dragged. Move sighed and began to carry the books.

-

Kero and Yue were gliding over the woods. It may have been better than helping Aura clean, but there was still nothing much to do. Kero had tried to get Yue to play a game of I spy, but that had bored the moon guardian far to quickly. Now they flew I silence. Kero looked over at his brother.

"What do you want to do?" He asked Yue.

"Don't start." Yue said.

Kero sighed and kept flying. "You think she's done cleaning?" He asked.

"Probably close enough." Yue replied, turning back home.

-

Aura finished the last of her cleaning. She had swept small, controlled flames over everywhere on the floors. It was likely that so long as Kero got rid of the ones that were on him now, they'd be gone.

Speaking of Kero, He and Yue landed, seeming to have an inner alert when the work was done and it was safe to come back.

She sighed and flopped onto her bad. It was almost night now, and she hoped she could get some sleep. The smelled weird to her now, without the dust and debris. It smelled of singed wood and bugs.

She was tired, but unable to sleep. Maybe if she was more tired… she got up. A dash through the woods could do her some good right about now.

Or someone to play with. Kero and Yue were both getting ready for bed. They had been flying all day to avoid work.

She slipped off into the woods. There was one person who always seemed up for playing. She landed on a sturdy tree limb. She tapped her nose to Cloud and Flower. Something to make her sleepy and keep her nose from smelling the unsettling cleaned smell. Something that smelled that it was hers. The two came out to play.

Flower danced below them. Aura hopped from cloud to cloud, playing tag with her card. She snatched one of Flowers flowers as it flew high into the air. It became a game between Aura and Cloud to catch the flowers. Flower threw many more through the air. The trio played into the night.

At dawn the tired chimera bid farewell to her friends for the night. She walked through the woods. The wolf cave was closer, so she would sleep there tonight. Who knows, maybe she could bring home a couple replacement fleas for Kero!


	31. Hunting days

Hunting days

Aura's stomach growled. She tore into her half of the rabbit she and Kero had caught. No matter how much she ate, it never filled her up lately. Kero and Yue agreed it was probably because so much energy of hers was being used up to keep the cards going. With the new pack adjusting, she didn't want to freak them out by letting all the cards out already. She had let some of them out to hunt in the farther woods, but they weren't getting near as much energy from finding other foods as they used to.

Kero always wanted to help share the kill. He hunted, but maybe they should try combing the woods for game separately. Aura was about to the point of roaming into the plains for a chance at food. Her stomach growled again, but the wind was empty of game scent.

The cards couldn't hunt very well. Few of them were born to attack, and the desire to roam. And it would be cruel to take their freedom away if she could at all avoid it. She began to scale a tree, eyes set on a late to hatch bird nest. The parents swooped at her, and she dropped to the ground and ran off.

So how to get enough food then? Her pack wasn't an option; they had a tough time feeding themselves on their own. They weren't experienced hunters after all. The cards who roamed hunted all they could.

But some cards would be better hunters than others. The ones with ranged attacks that could bring down fast moving game, or even birds. No animal would take a person long enough away as a threat until it was too late. Her ranged cards would be perfect.

She pulled out her staff. Her tail twitched excitedly as she called her old friends back out. Arrow and Shot leaned against trees and looked inquiringly at their master.

She explained to them, and they said with a smile they would be glad for moving targets. The group set out to the farthest reaches of their territory to look for game. It wasn't long before they felled a deer. It was true. Shot and Arrow were great hunting partners after all.

That night, even Kero was full.


	32. Game

Game

Kero narrowed his eyes. There was another rustle and a growl. He lowered his ears and huffed. There was another rustle and he looked up at Aura.

"Will you just go to sleep already? You're keeping me up!" He mrrowed. Aura rolled over to look at him.

"I can't help it, it's fall. The animals are all scurrying for food stores, and I'm picking up all that energy. I thought I told you. She groaned and rolled over again. Kero sighed.

"Yeah, you did, but it doesn't help. It's still keeping me up too." He said, rolling onto his back. "Can't you just ignore it or something? I mean, if it always happens couldn't you learn to black it out?" He asked her. Aura shrugged and flopped her head into a mess of blankets.

"Nope. All the stress gets to me. The stress makes it impossible to ignore the scurries. Especially since I need to put on fat stores too." She said, rolling over once more. Kero laid his head on his paws and thought for a while.

"So then, if you had a snack and a way to unwind, you might fall asleep?" He asked. Aura gave up and slid onto the floor.

"I guess so, why?" she said.

"Well, why not play with some of the cards then, take them on a hunting trip? "

"Because play fighting is actually practicing survival skills, and it registers that way. So it doesn't help."

Aura took off into the sky. Kero got up and closed the window after her. He lay down to think how to get Aura to go to sleep, thus letting him get some sleep.

-

Aura landed on the forest floor. The cold ground under foot and the smells of tree needles and animal smells calmed her in a way. She sniffed around and began to slide through the forest. The moon was almost full and it lit the path in front of her well. She slunk through the wood and began to track a trail. Deer scent.

Of course she couldn't hunt deer one on one, but it gave her something to do on a sleepless night. She could even pass the news back to the pack if she found them. Her ears flicked to a crunch of leaves, and she stopped to watch a mouse. It froze, watching her fearfully. She turned back to the trail. Mice were always more trouble to catch than they were worth.

-

It was dawn before Aura came back. Another sleepless night gone. Kero watched her come in. It was clear she hadn't gotten any sleep this night. Her fur was messed up and she hardly lifted her paws off of the floor. He got up to greet her.

"Good morning," he said. "Besides play fighting, what else do you do to unwind?" He asked. It had been nagging him all night. Aura flopped onto her mattress and shrugged.

"I dunno, run, explore? I don't usually have much else to do. Why?"

"I was just wondering. What about crossword puzzles, or those little square-ish number puzzles-"

"You mean sudoku?"

"- Yeah, that, or mazes and stuff. Those games you do with pencil and paper?"

"Hm, Don't usually find them around here. I don't usually like mental puzzles that much. They just frustrate me. But maybe the card, Maze, I could run through Maze for a long time and not have to worry about running out of the territory. I think I may just do that."

She got up again and waked to the window.

"Hey," Kero said, "Can't you bring up breakfast first?" He asked. Aura sighed and smiled. "Yeah, sure."

-

The chimera stood in a clear space on the edge of the territory with Kero. The chimera tapped her nose to the pink card and it turned blue and gold. Maze emerged, wrapping itself around the area and bending it this way and that.

Aura and Kero took off through the maze. Kero hopped up a ledge and Aura followed after him. She bounded over a chasm from one twisty wall to another. Maze bended the floor, and the pair slid onto another wall on the ceiling. Aura laughed and pounced on the floor that might have been a wall. Kero was sticking to one spot as much as Maze would let him.

Which wasn't all that much, admittedly.

Aura abounded around a corner and stopped short. A startled deer bolted back to the trapped herd. One of the scared animals bolted at her. A buck with good, big, antlers. Aura turned around and bolted back around the corner, telling Kero to get out of the way as she passed him. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea after all.

Kero followed her example and tore off through the maze. The panicking herd chased them through. They bounced out of the way onto a ledge. The herd bolted past. Aura watched and sprang after the fleeing animals. Kero thought for a moment, and then decided to hunt with her. He flew over the herd, separating a deer from the rest. Aura sprang onto its back and bit on its neck. It shook her off and she rolled to her feet. Kero barreled into its flank. The deer skidded and the two tackled it. There was a scuffle, and then there was food. Auras tail wagged as the two dug into the meal. This had been a good idea after all.


	33. Attack pt 1

Attack

Aura growled at Eriol. "You're the one who's been attacking me?" She asked. Eriol grinned.

"Yes. And you've done so well to stop me so far I'm Eriol. I believe this is the first time we've met," he said. Aura growled and began a large circling.

She lifted her nose to the air and gave off a fierce war howl. Her pack answered, wanting to know what was going on.

Eriol raised a key into the air. He chanted something to the key and it became a long, golden staff topped with a shining sun. 'This tactic worked with Sakura,' he thought, raising his staff into the air. Magic began to eclipse the setting sun. A dome of darkness enveloped the area.

Spinnel and Ruby landed next to their master on the arch, just about the same time Kero and Yue arrived. One glance at their master told them to be ready to fight.

The two guardians stood in shock, staring up at the man on the arch who seemed so familiar.

"Clow…?" Yue said quietly. But they looked closer. No, it wasn't Clow exactly. But the magic felt so familiar, just like their makers. Aura staggered a little. Sleep inducing magic. It was working at her, trying to make her fall asleep. It was very near successful too. She snarled and shook her head, clearing a few magic cobwebs out.

"So you aren't going to all asleep then?" Eriol asked.

"What the hell'r you doin'?" She growled sluggishly.

Eriol gave an evil looking smile as he said,"I've cast a darkness spell over the area. The city and the surrounding woods." He shrugged. "Everyone's fallen asleep. If you don't break the spell before morning, it will stay that way. Forever."

Aura raised her head. "Yeah, so what?"

Eriol looked a little taken aback at this. "Huh?" he said dumbly.

"So what. If you're trying to scare me or something, it's not workin'. I couldn't care less about the city." She explained. She then turned back to the cave she had come through.

'Actually,' She thought to herself, 'If everyone's asleep I can steal a lot of good food. Not like they'll need it,'

-

'She's just walking away! That's not supposed to happen! Why on earth did Kero choose her?' Eriol thought fast.

'Well, if that's not enough to motivate you, maybe something else can." Spinnel and Ruby took their cue. As Eriols set threw their attacks at Aura, Yue and Kero flew in to stop them. The guardians all flew at each other. All four took to the air.

Kero and Spinnel split away from Yue and Ruby. Spinnel was bombarding Keroberos with blasts of light. Yue was being pursued by blasts of crystal. Aura looked up from the ground. Eriol launched his own attack at her. Her ears caught the sound and she leaped to the side of the attack. Then, crouched down a moment.

Her wings unfurled and she took to the sky, rocketing in to help Kero's fight.

"Spinnel!" He called. The panther looked over, giving him just enough warning to dodge the third cat. Kero shot at his opponent and snarled. He bit Spinal's foreleg. The panther broke free. But then the cat was receiving a magic boost from Eriol. Spinnel flew faster than either opponent. He shot up behind Keroberos and launched a blast. Kero roared and crashed to the ground. Aura dove down, and yowled. Kero roared and rose to his feet again. The cats were back in the sky. Spinnel flew about, flitting left and right. The two were having trouble keeping up.

Yue wasn't faring all to well on his own against Ruby. The two traded crystals. Yue was getting hit a lot. He worried, but there was no way Eriol could tell Ruby to let up a bit without giving his intentions away.

Spinnel yowled, taking Eriol's attention back to that fight. He gasped. Spinnel faltered. He had a tear in one wing. Aura roared. Kero and she began diving at the injured cat, mercilessly shredding his wings.

"Spinnel!" He cried. The panther fell to the ground, and lay still there. But Eriol could feel he was just unconscious, not dead. But now the whole group was ganging up on Ruby. They attacked the wings, and she dropped form the sky in no time. Eriol worried about his guardians a moment. Then the fight was coming at him. He raised his shield and the three bounced off. Yue was keeping at long range, and was looking a little sick. But the others,

Kero and Aura, looked all but savage as he tore at the shield. Aura was howling and yowling and screaming, beating at the shield. On the ground below were his two other creations.

He lashed back, his magic knocking the group back onto the ground. Aura growled and Eriol regained his composure. He tried to find some other way that he might win. Aura and Kero were still growling and snarling at him. Maybe he shouldn't have wiped the other guardians memories quite so clean after all.

-

"If we go close again, he'll knock us back again." Kero argued. Aura lashed her tail. "I know that!" she growled, "But I am not letting him go. He just attacked you, I'm gonna kill im' for that!" She spat. She snarled up at the other magician. Her anger grew. She howled furiously into the sky.

She was shaking with anger, but then something occurred to her. She yowled again, calling for an answer from her pack. The air was silent.

--

"I've cast a darkness spell over the area. The city and the surrounding woods. Everyone's fallen asleep. If you don't break the spell before morning, it will stay that way. Forever."

--

"The pack," She muttered. Kero looked at her. "The pack! They answered my howls earlier. From this place. They're under this spell too." Aura shivered fearfully. Her ears pressed flat against her skull now.

-

Eriol watched. The cats had stopped growling. Now, Aura was pacing and baring her teeth at him.

-

'We can't attack him. Not enough power. The only way to get through that shield is more magic. But I can't spare that, not till all the cards are changed.' She thought to herself.

'Then in that case,' She supposed, 'I'll change them and we'll all go after him.' She raised her staff into the air and called her cards. The last of the pink card circled around her. Glow and Storm. Mist and Return. Silent and Sleep. Illusion and Nothing. Light, Dark, Voice and Shield. The last twelve cards were called by name and Touched with the blades in her staff. The circle began to change. The pink cards became gold and light blue.

They were all changed now. Except for two. Light and Dark stood where they were, unchanged. She blinked in surprise and tried her spell again, bushing the blades onto their covers. They sparked, but did not change.


	34. Attack pt 2

Attack Pt. 2

"Why don' they change?" Aura asked in confusion. The cards fluttered to the ground. Kero picked them up and handed them back to Aura. She took the cards and looked at him for an answer. Kero lowered his head.

"Those cards, Light and Dark were always stubborn. They are the most loyal. They're still loyal to Sakura. They're the hardest to change."

"Oh… How'm I suppos' to change them then? I don' have nearly 'nough magic. It took a lot just to get the others changed. And this damn spell's making me sleepy 'gain,"

Kero looked to his brother. Yue looked at them blankly. Kero watched.

"Well?" He asked.

Yue blinked. "You two have been growling at each other as far as I can tell. I couldn't understand a word you were saying."

"Oh," Kero realized they had been talking in the cards language the whole time. "Well, She asked how we could change Light and Dark. Should we…?"

Yue nodded. "You," he said to Aura, "Can absorb us into the staff. The Light and Dark are the first cards under each of us, so we may be able to get through to them."

Aura looked at them in disbelief. "And you never mentioned this earlier, because…?"

"Because," interrupted Eriol, "if you don't succeed in changing Light and Dark, and breaking this spell, they will be stuck, sleeping in the staff forever."

Aura turned and glared at him. Kero silently cursed at the man.

"No way," Aura said. "I'm not risking you two. It's sad, but if Light and Dark are still loyal to their old master, then that's their choice. I'm not going to risk you two by making them change if they don't want to," the chimera decided.

-

Eriol was surprised again. 'She's not going to?' Well, she looked like she was completely serious. Kero was growling at her. Apparently, judging by what Yue had said, they were talking. Aura shook her head again and sat down. Keroberos looked exasperated. Yue was holding the two cards, looking a little lost because he couldn't understand what his little brother and his master were saying.

-

"No!" Aura said again, "I still don't think I'd have the power. 'm not gonna' to risk it."

"You have to try. I know you can if you really try," Kero pleaded.

"I said no."

"You would have enough power if you absorbed us, and focused your energy a bit more!"

"And how the heck am I supposed to focus my energy? I don't even feel it! I can't concentrate it and I can't amplify it, so there's no way. I can't guarantee your safety. So I won't do it."

"Well, what about your pack? Are you going to give up on them? And you can focus if you try. I've seen you hunt! You can't feel attention, but you focus that just fine!"

-

Keroberos and Aura were almost roaring at each other now. Aura snarled and even had her claws out. Kero growled something loudly at her, and she stopped growling all together. It looked like she was thinking. She started snuffling at Kero. His ears perked as he thought something over. He nodded and then looked over at Yue and growled. Yue gave them another blank look, and Kero remembered to switch to English.

-

They seemed to have reached an agreement. Eriol watched as Aura absorbed the two guardians into her staff. She pulled out… Mirror?

He watched as Aura began to draw power from the sleeping spell, from herself, and from the guardians in her staff. He began to realize what was happening as she bounced the energy into Mirror's mirror. It bounced back, more concentrated. It bounced from captor to card, back and forth. Mirror concentrated the energy Aura sent to her, and Aura added more energy into the spell. Back and forth until it was like a laser of magical energy.

-

Aura tossed Light and Dark into the air. Her four bladed staff felt light in her jaws. She reared up and pinned the blades onto the two cards. She closed her eyes and concentrated the magic into the cards. They began to fight…

-

"Change," She told them.

"No," They replied. She told them that they should change, or Keroberos and Yue would never be free from the staff. They told her they would not.

She told them that there was a spell they needed to break, but they did not wish to change.

They wouldn't change when she told them the other cards would have it so much better once they had changed.

But she told them that they would change because she needed her pack back. They would change because they had a job to do, and they would change because she told them to and she could make them. She sent the searing laser of energy into the cards. They struggled, but it was too much to resist. They shed their pink colors to be replaced by her blue and gold marks

-

Eriol smiled. She had changed the two cards into Aura cards. They were the last ones. Now her task was complete. He looked up to watch his spell unravel. Light did its job, just as it had under Sakura's command. He heard the guardians being released from the staff. He could hear the magic lifting sleep from the minds of people and animals alike.

He heard a savage roar.

He raised his staff to block the teeth and claws that had come so close. The chimera howled and tried to get her teeth into him. She got a scratch in on his arm.

He backed up, and then raised a spell. Spinnel, Ruby and himself were enveloped in he spell and taken room the battle field instantly.

-

Aura dropped onto the spot the wizard had just been. She sniffed about for a scent trail, for a clue, for him. He was gone. Again!

She let loose a scream of fury into the sky.

She lowered her head angrily. Gone again. Just like that she had let him get away. Angry tears rolled down her muzzle.

She howled to four small stars in her sky.


	35. Lastly

Lastly

Aura stood outside the gates of a large, fancy house in the middle of nowhere. Earlier that day, Dash had come back saying that the black cat of Eriols had flown into the woods and asked him to deliver a message. That Eriol wanted to meet Aura. That she should meet him at his house and he would explain the strange attacks of late.

Aura's fur was bristling all over. Kero stood beside her in his large form. Yue was on her other side looking vague. Aura led them in.

-

"But we threw a surprise party last time!" Ruby complained.

Eriol rubbed the scratch he had gotten yesterday. "Somehow," he said, "I don't think she'll be in the mood for a surprise."

-

Aura slunk through the house wearily. Her ears swiveled about constantly, checking for danger. Her nose twitched and sniffed continuously. Her eyes darted this way and that.

The guardians looked a little dazed.

They were caught up in returning memories. The décor was the same as his house, back when he lived in Japan as a boy. Back when he had Sakura changing the cards. Back in the days they had been forced to forget.

"Aura," Kero murmured as he gazed about, "I think I had a memory block. I'm remembering an adventure like these ones back before the plague."

Aura stopped looking around and turned her gaze to Kero. "Do you now? What all do you remember then?" she asked. Before Kero could offer an explanation, they found themselves in a long dining room.

Eriol sat at the end of a long table. Near the far wall were Spinnel and Ruby. Spinnel was lying down; Ruby was leaning against the wall. At least, it smelled like them. They both looked different then she had seen them.

At the table, a small meal sat in front of them. Most of it was meat. Aura sniffed the air, but neither pulled up a seat, nor went near any of the food. She stood in the doorway and watched Eriol very wearily.

Kero didn't have nearly that much reservation and leaped into the seat at the opposite end of the table. Now that he had his memories back, he didn't see a trap or danger in piling meat onto a small plate. He snatched the few sweets off the table and began to stuff his face.

Aura turned to watch him. When he didn't fall over dead from a booby trap, she apparently decided it was safe enough to take a seat. She still didn't touch any of the food. She turned to watch Eriol, waiting for some sort of explanation.

-

Eriol watched everyone settle. Kero's table manners had regressed father than they had been before, Eriol observed. At least last they had met, Keroberos had the decency to use a fork instead of his paws. Oh well.

He could see Aura wouldn't be the one to start conversation, so he began. "You no doubt want to know why I've been causing all this mischief for you over this past few months,"

Aura nodded and continued to watch him.

So Eriol began to explain. He explained that the cards had to be changed. He explained how changing them without a reason with her power levels was dangerous. He explained that he had planned this so that the cards would be able to change and survive under their new master and that she could change them with as little risk as possible. He looked back at Aura as he finished his explanations.

"So you planned the whole thing out from the start?" she asked, closing her eyes and facing the opposite wall.

"Yes. Like I said, I had to use those attacks so you could change the cards."

"You planned everything? Every plot and attack?"

Eriol nodded.

"You planned everything? The vines with leaves that attacked when I changed Fight?"

Eriol nodded and smiled. Aura continued.

"When you summoned a rock golem and I used Create to defeat it?"

"Yes."

"The leaves when I changed wood?"

"Yup,"

"And the river that flew into the sky on the day I changed snow?"

Kero was suddenly tense. Maybe even panicked. Why would he be tense? Eriol wondered. In answer to Aura's question, he answered, "Yes."

In that instant Aura lunged at him. She howled and began to dig deep scratches all across him. Kero leaped over and grabbed her scruff in his teeth, yanking her off of Eriol. She howled and yowled even louder.

Spinnel and Ruby were at his side, blocking Aura from getting near him. Kero wrestled Aura into the floor, using his weight to pin her down. He was roaring at her, trying to get her attention. Aura squealed and screeched, digging long scratches into the floor as she tried to get away from Keroberos. Eriol watched the scene in shock.

-

"Aura, get a grip on yourself!" Kero roared at her. Aura scrambled under his paws.

"Get Off!" She yowled, "That bastard killed my pack! I'll kill him! Get OFF!" She screamed. Kero put more weight on her as she writhed under his paws.

"Get a grip! It was probably an accident-"

"He just said he planned everything!" She roared.

"I don't think he knows! I don't think he knows they're dead!"

"He knows, or I wouldn't have new wolves in the woods! He's not that dumb!"

"I don't think he could tell one batch of wolves from the other! Why can't you just ask or something!"

"Let go! Get OFF!" She screeched, turning and taking a swipe at his nose. Kero reared in surprise and Aura was off in a shot. He grabbed her tail, rolling her over and trying to get his grip on her again.

Aura slid out of his reach, but she was on the wrong side. Kero now stood between her and Eriol. She snarled and shook with rage.

"He… that bastard… H-he k-killed my pack!" She growled, tears running down her muzzle. Kero reached out a paw to comfort her, but she turned and fled. She fled from the room, the house, and the area.

Kero watched form a window as she tore off out the gates, headed for the deepest stretches of woods.

Eriol looked at the fleeing chimera. "What," he asked Kero, "was all that about?"

Kero looked sadly at him. "You really have no idea, do you."

"No. I don't think so. What…?"

Kero lowered his face from the window and began to explain. About the ranchers and the wolves. How the wolves had taken a few sheep and alerted the ranches to their presence. How Aura had known ahead of time that the ranchers were going to get rid of the wolves, so she had moved them into the wildlife preserve a few more miles back. How when she learned the ranchers turned poachers were still after them, she had flown to warn her pack to get out of there.

And then about the river attack that made her too late to save them.

"I didn't see what happened," Kero continued, "Yue was hurt and I stayed to make sure he got on okay. But when I got there was blood, no wolves. Aura said the poachers had gotten to them first. Just barely…"

Eriol looked sad. "Oh…" he whispered, "I had no idea. I didn't even know that…"

"I should probably go try to find Aura." Keroberos said, walking out of the room with Yue close behind.

---

Aura was lying on her bed moodily. Kero and Yue had just come back a little while ago. And when Kero had seen the mood she was in, he had said,

"He really didn't know. He says he's sorry, and I really think he is. He wasn't malicious last time we met, some years ago. I don't think he is now. So please don't go after him or anything like that,"

So now she was stewing angrily in her room. Kero was on friendly terms with this guy, so she couldn't really sneak in and kill him later. Kero would be sad. But she sure didn't want that brat in her territory. Or casting spells around it.

And if he killed a pack once, it might happen again.

But if she killed him Kero would be mad. 'And Yue already thinks I'm a bit off the deep end, as it is' she added to herself.

So basically, there was a threat she couldn't take out, and it was in her territory. Kero looked up as if to say something. She glared at him, and he closed his mouth again.

Yue was a bit braver though. "Holding a grudge won't get you anywhere. Neither will glaring at Kero."

She shot Yue the same look, but he seemed completely immune which just made her mood worse.

"Why don't you just go to sleep and try to forget it for now?" Kero suggested.

Aura huffed, rolled over and closed her eyes. She might think of a way out tomorrow.

---

Aura's ears pricked at a tapping from the window. She lifted her head and saw Spinnel at the window. As soon as Spinnel saw her wake, he slipped a note under the window and took off.

Kero walked over and slid the note into the room. He opened it and read it.

"It's a note form Eriol," he said. Aura growled, but he continued, "He says he's really sorry about your pack, and will apologize himself. He'll be around the small grassy area near the edge of the small roads area."

Aura stretched her head forward to read for herself. It was true. She knew the area he was talking about. The sandy floors that bordered the north east of the woods. A small meadow clearing near a tangle of dirt roads.

Her territory again! Was he trying to rub it in that she couldn't do anything to him? Or was he just not thinking?

She wondered.

---

The next day Aura was slinking across her territory towards the meadows. An apology was useless to her, but it occurred to her that if he was really trying to get back on her 'good side' (Which was NOT going to happen) then he might agree to a truce on her terms. She was slinking through the grasses, looking for the wizard. She spotted him and stalked closer.

He saw her and looked uncertain weather to stand there, wave or come over. She came closer. He was just across a small brook from her. She raised her head over the grasses and watched him. He looked about ready to apologize, but she didn't really want to hear it. She said as much.

"I don't want any sort of apology. Those don't do any good to me. But if you're trying to get off my bad side, stay out of my territory. That would be the woods up to the mountain peaks, and to the plains, and the city from the orphanage to the school area. The surrounding fields there too. And the canyons to the west. If you stay out of my territory, and don't try casting any spells over them, I won't go after you. And leave all my pack mates completely alone. If I do catch you in my territory, I'm gonna kill you. I don't want to see your guardians near my territory either. They'll be attacked too." She said. Eriol looked a bit taken aback, but nodded.

"Good," she said, and stalked off back to the woods.

Spinnel floated next to Eriol. "Well, " Spinnel said, "considering how things were yesterday, I'd say that went rather well."

… TBC?

* * *

((A/N : no, not a very happy ending. IF I feel like writing little stories of life after, I'll post them. But they'd be when felt like returning to this fan fic. So they wouldn't probably be too frequent or very plot filled. Just FYI, Don't hold your breath for more))


End file.
